Enter the Angel
by RavenRunning
Summary: Since she was seven, Hawke's goal has been to be reunited with her friend and brother. After a long search, she finally gets a lead and heads to Loguetown. Now she is sailing with the Straw Hats, but is she destined for more? Follows the anime pretty well, with a few minor changes. Don't own One Piece or cover image. BEING REWRITTEN! Enter the Angel 2
1. Chapter 1: A Sudden Introduction

********************I have begun a rewrite of this story! It is titled _Enter the Angel 2.0!*****************************_**

**Chapter 1**

**A Sudden Introduction**

A huge gust of wind suddenly blew through the streets of Loguetown. People and shop fronts alike jostled Zoro as he flew by.

"Where the hell did this wind come from?" the swordsman muttered.

He'd been fighting Tashigi, but then this wind had come and blown them all away.

Zoro crashed into the ground as the wind finally started to die down.

"Now where did everybody else go?" he wondered, sitting up.

"Here," he heard a weak, quavering voice from behind him.

Turning, Zoro saw that the wind had blown all the members of the crew together. Usopp had been the one who had answered him.

"Well that was fun," laughed Luffy, getting up and dusting himself off.

Zoro stood and checked his swords.

Suddenly, he heard a sharp cry above him.

"Help!"

The crew looked up. There was something, no, there was _someone_ in the sky!

"Help!" came the cry again.

"Who is that?" asked Sanji, craning his neck to look up.

"Whoever it is, they're falling pretty fast," muttered Zoro, "They'll kill themselves for sure."

He jumped into the path of the plummeting person and they collided in midair. The force of the collision was a little more than Zoro had expected, and they crashed into a nearby building.

Once the dust had settled, Zoro found himself under someone.

"Hey, move will you," he grunted as he started to push the person off of him.

The figure let out a small whimper as it started to move. Zoro could make out a mass of long brown hair and a black leather jacket.

"Are you hurt?" he asked the pile of hair.

A hand came up and brushed the hair out of the persons face, revealing a girl. She looked down at Zoro through glazed eyes.

"Take me to your captain," she gasped.

This startled Zoro and his body jerked up.

The girl whimpered again and fell sideways off of him.

"Oooh! An angel has fallen from the sky!" cried Sanji and rushed over to where the pair was lying on the ground.

Zoro saw Sanji coming.

"Hold it you shitty cook," he snapped, "She's hurt."

Zoro could see her clearly now. Her hair was dark and wavy and came to about half way down her back. There was a loose braid going back and down her head from behind her left ear. She wore a black leather jacket over a blue shirt and she had grey shorts on. Zoro noticed that she had two necklaces around her neck, one gold and one silver.

The girl raised her head again, reaching out her hand to grab Zoro's wrist. She seemed to not be aware of the other men surrounding her.

"Please," she panted, "Take me to Luffy."

"Huh?" said Luffy, surprised.

The girl winced as she tried to pull herself up, she didn't seem to hear him.

"I've finally found him," she whispered, almost to herself, "I need to get to Luffy."

Her eyes focused a little bit and her gaze met Zoro's.

"You're part of his crew aren't you?" she asked, sounding a little worried, "You are Roronoa Zoro?"

"Uh…" Zoro stuttered, he could feel his face turning red.

He could see the girls face full on now. She had big green eyes, filled with ready to fall tears. She looked like she was in a lot of pain. But she struck a chord in Zoro. He had never felt like this towards any woman before. He thought she was beautiful, which was impressive in and of itself, but his heart just started racing and he wasn't sure whether he felt scared or happy. He liked the way she had said his name. He quickly looked at the ground so the others wouldn't see his face.

"Please," groaned the girl again, her hand slipped and she fell back onto the ground, "Take me to your captain."

"Okay," was all Zoro could get out.

The girl smiled and pushed herself up with her hands again. Her face contorted in pain and she slumped forward. Zoro caught her before she hit the ground.

"Hey, are you going to be okay?" he asked, pulling her up.

Her eyes were closed and she looked like she had passed out.

"Well, she wanted to see you Luffy," Zoro grunted.

He picked up the girl and held her out to Luffy.

The captain came over and looked into the girls face.

Suddenly his eyes widened and a look of shock swept over his face.

He faced the rest of the crew.

"She's coming with us," he stated.

Usopp's eyes widened, Sanji looked quite pleased and Zoro concealed his grin.

Just then, they heard a voice coming in on the wind.

"Guys!"

"That was Nami-san!" swooned Sanji.

"We need to get on the Merry now!" exclaimed Usopp, seeing how far out to sea the ship was already.

"Hang on a sec," laughed Luffy.

He ran back towards the ruined building Zoro had smashed into.

"What are you doing Luffy?" asked Zoro warily.

They watched as Luffy grabbed onto a metal rafter and stretched out his arms.

Zoro saw what was coming and tightened his grip on the girl in his arms. He was startled at how much she weighed. She was light as a feather. It felt like the next gust of wind could blow her away.

The girl was resting her head on his chest. He could feel her press her face against his shirt.

"I've finally found you, Luffy," he heard the girl sigh into his chest.

Then he felt her muscles relax. She must have lost consciousness again.

Just as this happened, Luffy's body shot back and scooped up the four of them and they were catapulted, screaming, out to the Merry.

"Damn you, Luffy!" shouted Usopp as he landed heavily on the deck, "You're trying to kill us!"

"Oh, sorry," mumbled Luffy, getting up.

"Guys," gasped Nami, running over to them, then she stopped short, "Who is that?"

She was pointing to the girl, who had fallen out of Zoro's arms and onto Sanji's lap, much to Sanji's delight.

"We've found a mystery woman, Nami-san," said Sanji, moving his hand to stroke the girls' hair.

Zoro stood up and snatched the girl to safety before Sanji's hand fell.

"Here, Nami," Zoro held out the girl's body to the navigator, "She's hurt."

"We're keeping her," Luffy put in.

"What?" gasped Nami, then she stared, "You can't just decide to keep someone Luffy, she's not a pet!"

Luffy shrugged and walked towards the masthead.

Nami shook her head and looked back to Zoro and Sanji.

"Where did she come from?" she asked.

"She fell from the heavens," cooed Sanji.

Nami blinked.

"Well she doesn't look too hurt, I'll put her in my room for now," the navigator said.

"Nami is so wonderful when she's caring!" swooned Sanji.

Nami carried the girl into her room and put her down on the bed.

"Well, I guess I'd better bandage you up since you'll be here for a while," she muttered as she rummaged through a trunk looking for their first aid box, "I wonder why Luffy wants you to come with us?"


	2. Chapter 2: Meeting the Crew

**Chapter 2**

**Meeting the Crew**

Hawke awoke in a dark room. From the motion and sounds, she knew she was at sea.

"Could it be," she whispered to herself, "Or was that all a dream?"

She remembered the events that took place before she lost consciousness. The huge gust of wind, the fall, and then the man.

"It was definitely Roronoa Zoro," Hawke thought, "And he is definitely part of Luffy's crew."

Hawke sat up and groaned. Her whole body was stiff. She looked down and noticed some bandages around her waist. She twisted her body from side to side.

"No pain," she sighed happily, "Just sore. I should be fine."

Then she shuddered and clutched her waist.

"Did they see anything?!" she exclaimed in a terrified whisper.

Suddenly she heard voices outside the room.

"Food! Sanji!"

Hawke dropped her hands and sprang out of the bed. There was no mistaking that voice.

She hobbled towards the door on her stiff legs and pulled it open. Light dazzled her eyes and she brought her arm up to shield them.

There were sounds of movement below her and she could hear laughter.

"Luffy!" she cried.

The noises below her stopped.

Hawke lowered her arm and her eyes adjusted to the sunlight.

Before her was the deck of a ship, all around her was the sea and all above her was blue sky and sun.

She could see figures on the deck and moved forward to the railing. There was a girl with orange hair at the bow of the ship, standing beside the figurehead, which was a giant sheep.

There was the swordsman with the green hair sitting against the wall, he seemed to be sleeping.

And there were two other people on the deck. They seemed to have stopped moving in the middle of a wrestling match. There was a man with black hair and a long nose who was sitting on top of…

"Luffy!" Hawke cried again and ran down the steps, forgetting about her stiffness.

The man pinned on the ground jumped up with a cry, sending the man with the long nose flying.

"Hawke!" Luffy shouted and jumped up, wrapping his arms and legs around Hawke and enveloping her in a big hug.

"Oh, Luffy! I knew I'd find you!" cried Hawke, returning the hug.

"It's been so long," said Luffy, unwinding himself and standing next to her.

He leaned in and whispered in her ear.

"It's nice to see you, Sissy."

Hawke shot him a nervous look.

"I told you you shouldn't call me that," she said.

But Luffy ignored her.

"Everyone!" he shouted, taking Hawke's hand.

The girl at the bow came forward and hit the swordsman on the head.

"Wake up Zoro!"she said, "We're meeting the girl you brought."

Zoro woke up, rubbing his head, "Stop hitting me, woman! I don't take orders from you!"

"Whatever," said the girl and came over to where Luffy and Hawke were standing.

Hawke heard a door open behind her.

"Oooohhhh! The mystery woman is awake! How are you my beautiful!" came a voice.

"Calm down Sanji, you'll scare her away," said the man with the long nose, he had gotten up and was standing beside the girl with orange hair.

Another man with curly eyebrows emerged and stood beside the man with the long nose.

"Usopp, you cannot think that this beautiful woman would run away from a true gentleman?!" said the man, winking at Hawke.

This made Hawke blush and she looked at the ground.

"Oh she's so modest, oh! My heart can't stand her cuteness!" the man swooned.

"Shut up Sanji," snapped the girl.

"Nami-swan! I love it when you're assertive," cooed the man, waving his arms around.

"Everyone!" shouted Luffy again, raising Hawkes hand with his.

"This is our new crewmate. Her name is Hawke."

"What?!" the crew shouted, "Luffy you can't just make people crew members like that!"

"Sure I can," laughed Luffy, "I'm the captain. Plus, I made her a promise."

"Yes you did, Luffy," laughed Hawke and she held out one of the necklaces she wore around her neck.

It was a gold chain with a gold cross pendant on it.

Luffy laughed again, "You still have that, great!"

"What is that?" the swordsman asked, he had gotten up and joined the group.

"This is Luffy's promise to me that I would be part of his crew someday," explained Hawke.

"I'm so glad you're here," shouted Luffy again, giving Hawke another hug, "This means we can have a feast! Sanji! Food!"

"Alright, alright," said the man with the curly eyebrows, "But only because a beautiful woman is probably hungry," he winked at Hawke again.

She blushed, "Actually I am quite hungry, thank you."

"I shall prepare a meal worthy of a goddess!" exclaimed the man and ran back through the door that he had emerged from.

"That was Sanji, our cook," said Luffy, "This is Usopp, our sniper, Zoro, our swordsman, and Nami, our navigator. And this ship is the Going Merry, the ship of the Strawhat Pirates!"

"I'm so proud of you, Luffy," laughed Hawke.

"We get to have a feast!" shouted Luffy and ran after Sanji.

Hawke watched Luffy go and smiled.

"So, you two know each other then," Nami said as she came up beside Hawke.

"Yeah, we grew up together in the same village," explained Hawke, "He's my b-," she hesitated, "-best friend."

"Oh, okay, well that explains why he was so quick to make you part of the crew," said Nami.

"And he gave you that necklace?" asked Zoro.

Hawke turned towards him.

"Yes," she explained again, "I think a pirate friend of his, Shanks, let him have it from their treasure. It was his promise to me before he left that I would be part of his crew one day and sail to the end of the Grand Line with him."

"Hmph," grunted Zoro, and went into the ship.

"Don't mind him," said Usopp, "He's still sleepy."

Hawke smiled uncertainly.

"Well, let's go in for the feast," said Nami, "You can tell us about yourself while we eat."

Hawke's smile faltered for a second before coming back onto her face.

"Yeah," she said "That'd be great!"

The rest of the crew made their way to the galley.


	3. Chapter 3: Hawke's Story

**Chapter 3**

**Hawke's Story**

"This is a really wonderful feast Sanji," said Hawke, filling her plate with a huge assortment of food, "You're an amazing cook!"

"The flattery and compliments of a gorgeous woman are like mountains of treasure to my heart," sang Sanji, "Hawke-san, you are a jewel among women."

Hawke blushed and turned her attention to the others at the table.

Luffy was stuffing his face with everything he could reach.

"Just like old times," Hawke sighed happily.

She made sure her arm was between Luffy and her food before turning her attention to the others.

Zoro seemed to be drinking more than eating, though he was eating almost as fast as Luffy. Usopp was trying to keep his food from being snatched by the captain, and failing.

"Men are quite messy aren't they," laughed Hawke to Nami, who was sitting next to her, "How did you handle being the only girl for so long?"

"I don't know how I did it," laughed Nami, "But I'm afraid it's rubbing off on me."

Nami devoured her plate and reached for seconds.

Hawke laughed and started on her own plate.

"Luffy! Give me back my chicken!" she shouted and used her cup to pin Luffy's outstretched arm to the table and retrieved her chicken leg.

"You're a quick learner," said Zoro.

"Oh, Luffy hasn't changed one bit," laughed Hawke.

Zoro's faced darken a little and he went back to draining his mug.

"Did I say something wrong?" Hawke whispered to Nami.

"Oh, that's just Zoro," Nami sighed, "He's always mad at something, don't let it bother you."

"Oh, okay," Hawke replied, glancing back over to Zoro.

He had been looking at her but quickly turned his eyes away again. Hawke wondered if she had said something that offended him.

A sudden commotion at the other end of the table drew her attention. Luffy and Usopp had jumped onto the table and were dancing around with chopsticks stuck in their noses. They looked so ridiculous. Hawke couldn't stop laughing.

Once the feast was over, and things started to quiet down, Sanji started to pick up the plates.

"Here, let me help you," said Hawke as she stood up.

"Oh, no my dear lady," cooed Sanji, "I would never sully your hands with work such as this."

Then he turned to Usopp and Luffy.

"Hey! You two help me wash up."

"Aww why do we have to," whined Usopp.

"Just shut up and help," replied Sanji.

Hawke laughed and sat back down.

She noticed Nami was looking at a map.

"So I'm assuming we're headed to the Red Line?" said Hawke as she glanced over Nami's shoulder.

"Yeah, how'd you guess?" asked Nami.

"Well it's really the only place to go after Loguetown, and I'm sure Luffy wants to get to the Grand Line," said Hawke.

"That makes sense," laughed Nami.

"You're such a genius Hawke-san!" swooned Sanji.

Hawke waved towards the kitchen, and then bent down close to Nami's ear.

"Is he always like this?" whispered Hawke.

"Unfortunately yes," sighed Nami, "It isn't so bad though, we won't ever have to do dishes."

Both girls smiled at each other.

"So," said Zoro suddenly.

Hawke looked over at him.

"Aren't you going to tell us about your history with Luffy?" he asked.

"Well that's a little forward, Zoro," said Usopp.

"What?" snapped the swordsman, "I just want to know about the new crew member. If I'm going to be living with her, I think I have the right to know about her."

"It's alright Usopp," said Hawke, "I don't mind. If Luffy trusts you guys, then I can trust you."

She turned to Zoro again .

"But you make it sound like me and Luffy were _involved_," she smiled.

Zoro's face lifted a little.

"You're saying you weren't?" he demanded.

"No," laughed Hawke, "We were just good friends, Zoro, we were only seven."

"You were that young?" asked Nami, looking surprised.

"When Luffy left, yeah," replied Hawke, "His grampa took him away and I didn't know where he went. Luffy and I had been friends ever since I can remember. I was an orphan in the village, and Luffy was my only friend."

Luffy came out of the kitchen and sat on the table.

"Me and Hawke used to train together all the time. But I went to live somewhere else and Hawke couldn't come with me. That's why I made her a promise to be on my crew when we were both stronger."

"Yeah," said Hawke, "I stayed in the village until I was fourteen. Then I decided to set out to look for Luffy."

"If you'da stayed until you were seventeen, you would have seen me set out to sea," said Luffy.

"What!? You came back to the village?" shouted Hawke, jumping up.

"Yeah," laughed Luffy, "I never left our island."

"What?!" shouted Hawke again and slammed her fist into the table.

"Woah, calm down," said Nami.

Hawke stood still for a few moments, her head was bowed and her shoulders were shaking.

"Are you okay, Hawke?" asked Usopp.

Hawke's shoulders relaxed, she raised her head and smiled.

"Sorry," she apologized, "I'm fine."

There was a pause.

"So what happened after you left?" asked Zoro.

"Well," said Hawke, "I took a small fishing boat and set out, but there was a big storm and my boat didn't stand a chance. It got destroyed. I managed to drift ashore on another island and there was a man there who took me in."

Hawke shuddered.

"Hmm?" questionned Luffy, "Wasn't he nice for having saved you?"

"I thought he was at first," said Hawke, "And I said I would stay with him for a while to think of what I should do next. But he tricked me and kept me a prisoner. It turns out he was an evil scientist who experimented on the people he found washed up on shore."

Hawke sat down and bent her knees up to her chest.

"Did he experiment on you?" asked Usopp quietly.

Hawke nodded and shivered.

"What kind of sick person does that?" said Zoro, "What did he do?"

Hawke glanced over at him. He was watching her intently. She shifted in her seat and continued.

"I don't think I'm ready to say yet," she said looking towards Luffy.

Luffy was also staring intently at her.

Hawke looked back at her feet and continued.

"Well I escaped from there, and I managed to take his experiment notes and formula with me. I burned them all so no more innocent people would ever have to go through what I, and so many others, went through –"

Zoro suddenly stood up. Everyone looked at him. He came and sat down on the bench next to Hawke.

"What's up Zoro?" asked Luffy.

"Just keep telling your story," said Zoro.

"Umm, okay," said Hawke, "Well, I did burn all his notes, but the formula didn't get destroyed as I thought it would."

She reached down and held up the other necklace she wore around her neck. It was a silver chain with a marble-like pendant on it. The marble was covered in dark blue and purple swirls.

"It only melted into this sphere," Hawke continued, "I made it into a necklace and kept it close to me. My goal is to find a way to destroy it. So far, anything I've tried to do to it hasn't worked. I've even hit it with a cannon ball, but it didn't so much as dent it."

"That's one tough pearl," said Sanji, leaning over to get a look, "It looks so fragile too."

"Well not even a sword can damage it," said Hawke, staring at the sphere, "I hate it, I hate that it touches my skin every minute of every day."

She held it up higher.

"Then why do you keep it?" asked Usopp, "If you hate it, why don't you just throw it into the sea?"

Hawke stood up, tears filling her eyes.

"Because if I did that, then it might wash up on the same shore and he might find it again and use it again. I can't let that happen!" cried Hawke

"Okay, okay," shushed Usopp, "I'm sorry."

Hawke sat back down.

"I'm sorry, Usopp," she apologized, "I shouldn't have gotten excited."

"Well what happened after you escaped?" asked Nami.

Hawke was glad for the change in topic. She cleared her throat.

"Well I was stuck on that island, but I my fire caught the attention of a passing pirate ship. They took me on board. But I learned that the only reason their captain decided to let me on was so that I could be their entertainment."

"What do you mean by 'entertainment`?" asked Zoro.

"Well..." Hawke paused, "I was forced to dance for them and do whatever they wanted me to. It would have been a nightmare if the first mate hadn't been kindhearted. He told the crew that I was too young and shouldn't be treated in any perverse way. And he would punish anyone if they tried anything. He let me sleep in his room when the weather was bad..."

Hawke noticed that Zoro's hand, which had been gripping his sword tightly, relaxed a little.

"I spent a three months on that ship," continued Hawke, "And my dancing skills improved remarkably," she laughed a little.

Then her face grew serious again.

"But then one day the navy attacked the pirates. I thought I would drown because the ship was sinking and I was chained to the mast. But one of the marines saw me and saved me and took me aboard the navy ship. When I told him what I was doing on the pirate ship, the marine said that he would make sure I got to land safely."

Hawke smiled again.

"I was on the navy ship for a while because they had to continue their tour before they went back to their headquarters. And I got to know the marine that saved me very well. He had a wife waiting for him when he got home and he was so excited to return to her. He talked about her every day and said that she would approve of me. That made me happy. I got to know all the other marines and I even showed off my dancing for them on a couple occasions. When the ship finally got back to headquarters, the marine that saved me invited me to live with him and his wife. I accepted and spent the next two and a half years with them. They were both marines and they helped me train to be stronger. So now I'm good with a sword and with my knives."

Hawke looked over to Luffy.

"I bet I could beat you even faster now," she taunted, sticking out her tongue.

"No way!" laughed Luffy, "I've gotten way stronger too."

"Knives?" asked Nami.

"Oh yeah, that's my specialty, I'm a knife thrower," explained Hawke.

"We have quite the variety of weapons experts now," said Sanji, "If you don't mind me asking Hawke-san, but where do you keep your knives?" he looked her up and down.

"You pervert!" shouted Usopp and Zoro.

Hawke decided to surprise Sanji.

"It's a secret Mister Chef," she said as she bit her lip and gave him puppy eyes.

"Wooooaaaahhh!" swooned Sanji and fell over and started rolling around on the ground.

Zoro's mouth dropped open slightly.

Hawke laughed.

"You shouldn't encourage him," warned Usopp.

"Well, anyways," Hawke continued, "Since I was living near the navy base, I got to see all the new wanted posters that they put up. And one day I saw yours Luffy. That night I set out for Loguetown, because I knew you would end up there one way or another. I was lucky that I found Zoro when I did or I might have missed you. I never did properly thank you swordsman-"

Hawke scooted closer to where Zoro was sitting.

"Since you know my story now, you realize how much it really means to me to finally be back with my friend. So thank you."

Hawke wrapped her arms around Zoro and pulled him into a hug.

"Wait! What are you doing, stop it," Zoro fussed and tried to pull away.

"Uh, Zoro," said Luffy, tilting his head to the side, "Something's wrong with your face, it's all red."

"Well I assume this is the first time a girl has been that close to him," laughed Nami, "He isn't used to the attention."

"Hawke-san! Please give me a hug too!" swooned the cook.

"Drop it Sanji," muttered Usopp.

Hawke let go and sat back.

"And I'm sorry for anything I said at dinner that might have upset you," she said.

"What -, you- , what? You never said anything that upset me!" snapped Zoro, "What are you going on about?" he smoothed out his shirt and lowered his face, which was still quite red.

Hawke smiled.

"Men are always so dense, aren't they Nami," she laughed.

"Yes they are," laughed Nami, "Boy, am I glad there's finally another girl on your crew Luffy."

Luffy laughed and rolled off the table. This caused everyone to break out into laughter.

"Well," Usopp panted after they had been laughing for five minutes straight, "I think it's time to call it a night."

"Right," shouted Luffy, "Everybody sleep!"

And with that he fell onto the ground and started snoring.

Sanji picked him up.

"Us guys have the hammocks downstairs, Hawke-san, you could probably share Nami-san's room," he said as he dragged Luffy out the door.

"Actually, if it's okay with the captain, I can take the watch. I slept half the day away, so I'm wide awake," offered Hawke.

"mmzzzsure..," muttered Luffy.

"It's settled then," laughed Hawke, "You guys have a good sleep, I'll be fine."

"Alright Hawke-san, be safe my darling," cooed Sanji as he disappeared downstairs with Luffy over his shoulder.

"Are you sure, Hawke?" asked Nami, "You're more than welcome to share my room for a while, until we can get you your own."

"I'm sure," said Hawke, "I wouldn't be able to sleep anyways."

"Alright then," said Nami, looking up at the clouds, "Stay warm."

Nami went up to the room Hawke had awoken in earlier.

_Oh so that's her room_, thought Hawke.

Usopp came to the door.

"The crows' nest is up there, and the ladder is right there on the mast," he said while pointing.

"Thanks Usopp," Hawke smiled, "Have a good night."


	4. Chapter 4: A Moonlit Night:A Bond Forms

**Chapter 4**

**A Moonlit Fight: A Bond Forms**

Hawke climbed up into the crows' nest and settled down for the night. It was already dark out but the moon was almost full and lit up the sea. Hawke watched the stars twinkle and thought about the crew she had just joined.

She knew she was right in trusting Luffy's crew. They were all amazing people and they've taken good care of Luffy. Hawke was sure that Luffy never would have made it this far without them.

A gust of wind suddenly whipped Hawkes hair and sent shivers down her back.

"Brr," muttered Hawke, "It got cold fast."

She pulled her jacket tighter.

"I wonder what he's thinking?" she wondered, "He shouldn't keep calling me Sissy."

Hawke's thoughts had turned to Luffy.

"He keeps me hoping," she complained to herself, "I almost slipped up there, before dinner. I almost said he was my bro-"

Hawke caught herself.

She sat there in silence for a while, watching the light on the water and listening to the sound of the waves. Something landed on her eyelash, blurring her vision.

"What's this?" said Hawke.

She looked up and saw that it had started snowing.

"I was right," she shivered, "It did get cold fast."

Just then, Hawke heard movement on the deck below her.

Looking over the edge, she saw someone coming up the ladder.

"Is that you swordsman?" she called down.

"Here, I brought you this," Zoro muttered as he reached the crows' nest and threw in a blanket, "You should listen to the navigator."

"Thank you," said Hawke and she took the blanket and wrapped it around her body.

She looked back at Zoro, "Shouldn't you be sleeping?"

"Nah, I'm awake now," replied Zoro as he climbed into the crows' nest.

"Oh here," said Hawke as she held out a piece of the blanket, "If you're going to stay up here with me."

Zoro looked at the smiling girl offering him a blanket.

"No," he said, blushing, "I brought that for you."

"But you'll catch a cold," persisted Hawke, "And this ship doesn't have a doctor yet."

"I'm sure if I caught a cold, which won't happen by the way, that you or Nami could heal me."

"Oh? And why is that?" asked Hawke, still holding out her arm.

"Because you're women. Aren't you born with that type of knowledge?" snapped Zoro.

Hawke laughed.

"You really are dense Zoro," she smiled, "Women aren't born like that."

She sighed and lowered her arm.

"But I do know how to cure a cold."

"There see," said Zoro, "I was right."

Hawke smiled.

They sat there in silence for a few minutes. Hawke was looking up at the sky again.

"So why did you join Luffy?" she asked, bringing her gaze back down.

"Well he saved me from execution and said he'd help me reach my dream of becoming the world's greatest swordsman," recounted Zoro, "That's really all there is to it."

"The world's greatest swordsman?" repeated Hawke in awe, "So that's your dream?"

"Yes," said Zoro.

"Does every crew member have a dream like that?" she asked.

"Well, Nami wants to draw a map of the world," said Zoro, "That cook wants to find the All Blue, Usopp wants to be a brave warrior and Luffy wants to be the Pirate King."

Hawke laughed.

"This crew is so amazing," she sighed, "I'm not sure if I'll fit in."

"What do you mean?" asked Zoro.

"Well, you're all so dedicated to yourselves as well as to Luffy," said Hawke, "I mean, I will follow Luffy to the ends of the earth and lay down my life for him without question-"

Zoro smiled.

"- but I don't have a great goal like all of you."

"Don't you want to destroy that pearl thing?" pointed out Zoro.

"Well, yes I do," said Hawke, "But that isn't a life goal. Destroying something shouldn't be anyone's life goal."

Zoro looked at Hawke. She was wrapped up in the blanket he had brought her and was gazing out at the ocean, deep in thought. He felt his heart start to race again and quickly looked down at his feet.

"Back in the galley," he started, "Why did you get so upset when you learned that Luffy hadn't left your island?"

Hawke sighed and pulled the blanket in tighter.

"I was over reacting," she said, "At first I was angry that I'd gone through all that I did for no reason. But then I realized that this was the way things were meant to be, so I shouldn't have gotten upset."

Zoro blinked. He was surprised at how mature Hawke was. She seemed to understand the ways of the world; maybe that's because she had suffered.

"What did you go through?" he asked, adjusting his swords.

Hawke looked over at him.

"I know you're trustworthy, according to Luffy, but that doesn't mean that I fully trust you guys yet."

Zoro shrugged.

"Well, you'll tell us when you're ready I guess," he muttered.

They sat in silence for a long while. Hawke was just about to open her mouth, but the swordsman spoke first.

"You said that you were good with a sword."

Hawke looked up, startled.

"Well, yes," she stammered, "But I'm nowhere near as good as you are, Zoro."

"Come on," said Zoro, standing up, "Show me what you can do."

Hawke looked up at him. Zoro smiled. Hawkes eyes lit up and the colour rose in her cheeks. She quickly stood up.

"Alright then," she said.

She jumped out of the crows' nest and onto the sail. Zoro was impressed by her agility.

"There's more room out here after all," said Hawke smiling.

She reached into her jacket and pulled out two black, gold guilded throwing knives.

"Those are of good quality," noted Zoro as he drew a sword.

Hawke smiled.

"I'm not using these," she said, dropping them into the crows' nest.

She reached into her jacket for a second time. Zoro watched as she fiddled around with something. Her hand was reaching behind her back. This confused him. After a few more moments, Hawke withdrew her hand and brought out a full sized sword.

"What!?" exclaimed Zoro, "Where were you keeping that?"

Hawke smiled and gave him puppy eyes.

"It's a secret Master Swordsman," she said.

Zoro blushed and looked away.

"Just hurry up and start fighting then," he snapped.

Hawke gave him a questioning look and unsheathed her sword.

They stood facing each other on the sail, the moonlight making everything look sharp. Hawke readied her stance and Zoro did the same.

Hawke sprang forward and swung at Zoro. He deflected her stroke and lunged forward. Hawke dodged his attack and jumped over him. Zoro spun around and sliced his sword through the air. Hawke blocked his sword with hers and sparks flew from the blades as they made contact.

"You have some skill," admitted Zoro, stepping back, "My first attack usually cuts down any marine."

Hawke blushed.

"That's a great compliment coming from you," she said, "Thank you."

"Don't underestimate yourself, Hawke," said Zoro and he launched his next attack.

Hawke seemed to be temporarily stunned, but she blocked his swing and parried, putting him off balance. While Zoro regained his footing, Hawke swept up and went for his chest with her blade. Zoro just managed to block her, but he used his weight to push her away. She stumbled back and flailed her arms. _There's my opening,_ thought Zoro, and he placed the tip of his sword on her chest.

"I win," he stated.

Hawke stood there panting. She stepped back and smiled, sheathing her sword.

"I knew you were really good," she said, "Luffy has a way of finding the best people."

Zoro smiled.

"Well what does that say about you then?"

Hawke blushed and looked down.

"We were just children. Playing games and having fun all day. We were the best of friends though, if that's what you mean. He never chose me…" she smiled and climbed back into the crows' nest.

Zoro smiled at her back.

"Isn't it about time for you to go to bed?" she said, looking back towards the swordsman, who was still standing out on the sail.

Zoro sheathed his sword and walked over to the ladder.

"Yeah, I guess it is," he said as he started to descend.

Then he stopped.

"Hawke," he started.

"Yeah, Zoro?" she leaned out over the edge to look down at him.

"I think you'll fit right in with the crew," he paused, looking up at her, "… be safe… tonight."

Hawke blushed.

"Are all the men on this crew so polite?" she laughed.

"Only to the people who deserve it," replied Zoro as he resumed his descent.

Hawke watched as he entered the ship and closed the door.

She sat back down and rearranged the blanket around her. _It was really nice of him to bring me this,_ she thought as the snow started to fall more thickly.

She decided that she liked Zoro. He seemed to be very dedicated to his captain, but also concerned with the wellbeing of the rest of the crew. _Plus he was really sweet,_ she thought and blushed at the snowflakes. Sure he was snappy sometimes, but she could tell that he had a really caring heart. It had thrown her off when he had used her name while they were fighting. For some reason she lost her focus when he'd said it and had just barely managed to block his attack.

_Maybe you're just not used to being around so many people,_ she thought as she settled her gaze towards the sea.

Zoro swung into his hammock and settled down for the night.

"Why are you so late getting down here?" asked Sanji, "I hope you weren't annoying Hawke-san."

"Shut it you half-bit cook," snapped Zoro.

He paused and rolled over to face Sanji.

"Oi, cook," he said, "Keep your distance from Hawke."

Sanji looked shocked but said nothing.

"I'm only going to warn you this once," finished the swordsman as he rolled back over to face the wall.

Sanji stared at Zoro's back for a few moments before settling back down.

_I wonder what that was about?_ thought the cook.

Zoro was staring at the wall. He had just confirmed his fears.

He had feelings for Hawke.

He tried to make sense of all the thoughts swirling around in his head.

He knew that she felt the same way towards Luffy as he did, which was good. He needed someone else to understand his dedication to his captain and his training. Someone who could understand that could understand what kind of relationship he could handle.

He could tell that she had been through tremendous suffering. He would wait until she was ready to tell that part of her story.

He was glad that she was quite capable with a sword. He didn't need to be afraid of constantly having to protect her in a battle, she could defend herself, she was strong.

But he did want to know what that scientist had done to her. Maybe that's why she is so light, he thought. Maybe he took her bones out and replaced them with something else. Zoro clenched his fist. He couldn't stand the thought of Hawke undergoing any sort of torture.

_I wonder if she would ever dance for us_, he thought and blushed at the wall. _Don't be thinking like that,_ he scolded himself and closed his eyes, ready for sleep.

_Damn,_ he thought, _I've got myself into a mess here._


	5. Chapter 5: The Going Merry's New Scout

**Chapter 5**

**The Going Merry's New Scout**

By morning, the snow had disappeared and the sky was clear again. The sun had already risen when the crew started to emerge from the ship.

"Hawke," Nami called up to the crows' nest, "Are you awake?"

"I'll wake up Hawke-san!" swooned Sanji and he sped up the mast.

Zoro and Usopp came onto the deck.

~ Usopp walked over to the edge of the ship.

"Huh?" he grunted, "Hey guys, what are these?"

Nami joined Usopp at the rail. Usopp was pointing to the water.

"What is that?" asked Nami.

~ Meanwhile, Sanji had made it up to the crows' nest and leaned in.

"Oh Hawke-san, my lovely," he cooed, "It's morning."

Hawke was sleeping on her side on the floor of the basket. The blanket was covering her shoulder but had fallen off her legs and waist.

"Wooooaaahh!" yelled Sanji, "She's a sleeping angel!"

"Hey cook!" shouted Zoro from the deck, "What are you doing?"

Sanji looked down. _Oh right,_ he thought.

"Just waking up Hawke-san," he called down.

"Get your ass down here you curly freak!" shouted Zoro.

"Why don't you come up here and make me you Marimo!" returned Sanji.

All the shouting brought Hawke out of her slumber and she sat up, rubbing her eyes.

"Is it morning already?" she yawned.

"Hawke-chwan," cooed Sanji, hanging onto the edge of the basket, "I'll go and make breakfast for you and Nami-san."

"That sounds wonderful Sanji," smiled Hawke, "I brought you some stuff that might be useful."

"Huh?" questioned Sanji.

Hawke got out of the crows' nest and followed the cook down to the deck.

"Last night I spotted an island that wasn't too far away," she said, "I went over and found some fruits and a couple of wild pigs, so I brought some back and put them in the kitchen."

"An island?!" came a voice from behind them, "Where?! Let's go!"

Luffy had finally come up on deck.

Hawke laughed and walked over to the rail.

"Over there," she said, pointing into the distance.

"I don't see anything," muttered Luffy, shading his eyes.

"It's right there, on the horizon," insisted Hawke.

"I don't see anything either," said Zoro, coming up beside her.

"What?" said Hawke, "Hey, Nami, Usopp, come over here and look at this island."

The two came around to their side of the ship.

"Hawke?" asked Nami, "Why is our row boat full of fruit?"

Hawkes eyes widened.

"Oh, I forgot about those," she said, then shrugged her shoulders, "But they should be fine. Come here and tell me you can see that island over there."

Nami and Usopp joined the group at the railing.

"No," said Nami finally, "I can't see anything there. Hang on, I'll go check the charts."

Nami left and went into her room. Usopp was still squinting at the horizon. He took the goggles on his head and put them on, twisting them into focus.

"I can see something out there," he said, "But it's only a speck and I'm at my highest magnification."

Nami came back down.

"She's right," said Nami, holding up a sea chart, "There's an island near us in that direction."

She traced the distance from their location to the island.

"But that's way too far a distance to be able to be seen," she muttered, rolling up her charts, "You must have amazing eyesight. There's no way I could see anything that far away."

"So there is an island over there?" asked Luffy, "Great, let's go explore it!"

Hawke laughed.

"There isn't anything there, Luffy," she said, "Just some fruit trees and pigs."

"Pigs!" shouted Luffy, "Let's go catch one and eat it!"

Hawke laughed again.

"I already did," she smiled, "Sanji is making breakfast with them right now."

"Breakfast! Food!" shouted Luffy and ran into the ship.

"You went all the way to that island and back last night?" asked Zoro, "How?"

"Well…," hesitated Hawke, "I… used the row boat."

"Hmm," grunted Zoro, raising his eyebrow.

"Speaking of the rowboat," interjected Usopp, "It's full of fruit things."

"Oh, right," Hawke started and turned to Zoro, "You like sake right?"

"Yeah, I do," said Zoro.

"Okay good," said Hawke, "Then come over here."

She led the way to the other side of the ship.

The rowboat was floating in the water near the back of the ship. There were many pine-apple-like fruits sitting in the boat. It looked like their tops had been cut off.

"What are those?" asked Zoro

"These-," said Hawke, jumping into the rowboat, "- are Tropo fruits; special fruits that produce alcohol."

"Really?" said Zoro, leaning on the railing, sounding impressed.

"Yep," replied Hawke, grabbing one and climbing back onto the ship, "You just have to let them air out a bit and the outer peel hardens while the innards liquefy."

She handed Zoro the fruit.

~Nami looked over at them and nudged Usopp.

~"You can drink out of it like a mug," Hawke was saying.

Zoro looked at the fruit then shrugged and took a large swig.

"Wow!" he spluttered after he had swallowed, "That tastes almost like real sake, it's really good."

Hawke smiled.

"I thought you'd like it. And seeing as the ships stores are getting low…"

"Thanks, Hawke," smiled Zoro, taking another swig, "How did you know how to do this?"

Hawke jumped back into the rowboat and gathered the remaining fruits.

"The marines taught me," she said, "Here, catch!"

She threw the fruits, one by one, over to Zoro

"Really?" said Zoro, "I find that hard to believe."

He caught each fruit as it came over the railing and put it on the deck.

Hawke laughed and climbed back onto the ship, she picked up the fruits.

"Well they aren't allowed to bring alcohol onto the navy ships, so they have to make do with what they find when they're out at sea."

"Makes sense I guess," said Zoro, draining his fruit.

"I'll put these in the fridge so they keep for a while," said Hawke, she headed towards the kitchen with the remaining fruits in her arms.

"Here, wait," called Zoro, coming after her, "Let me carry some of those."

He took the fruits from her.

Hawke smiled.

"Thanks Zoro," she said and followed him into the kitchen.

~ Usopp and Nami exchanged looks as they stood on the deck.

"Something's wrong with Zoro," muttered Usopp, "He would never ask to help me or you with carrying things."

"Isn't it obvious," whispered Nami.

"Huh?" Usopp's face was blank, "Is he sick? Is it contagious?"

Nami laughed.

"Well if you can't see it, I'm not telling you," she said, "But don't worry, it's not contagious," she reassured Usopp, who had started to make a mask out of his shirt.

"Oh, that's a relief," he said, letting his shirt drop, "Well I hope he gets over it soon, he's freaking me out."

Nami laughed and made her way into the kitchen, where Sanji had finished making breakfast.

"Woah, Hawke-san," Sanji was cooing, "So you could see an island that not even Usopp could see with his goggles? Your eyes must be miraculous as well as gorgeous!"

Zoro shot him a death glare.

"Er-," corrected Sanji, "I mean, you must have amazing eye sight. You would make a good scout."

"Huh? Scout?" said Luffy through a mouth full of bacon, "Yeah, we need a scout on our crew! Hawke, you're our scout!"

"Oh," Hawke looked surprised, then she blushed and smiled, "Of course Luffy. I'd love to be the Merry's scout."

"Woohoo!" shouted Luffy, showering Hawke with bacon pieces, "Scout! Scout! Scout! Hawke is the scout!"

"Quiet down Luffy," said Sanji, "You're spitting food all over Hawke-san."

"It's okay," said Hawke and she started wiping the food off her clothes.

"Here," snapped Zoro, holding out a napkin.

"Oh, thank you," smiled Hawke and took the napkin.

She had just finished cleaning herself up when Usopp joined the crew and they all sat down for breakfast.

"Mmm, I'm sure glad you got this pig, Hawke," spluttered Usopp through a mouthful, "I haven't had bacon in forever."

"It was no problem Usopp," smiled Hawke as she scooped some of the food in question onto her plate.

"There's a lot of meat so everybody have seconds," called Sanji from the kitchen, "Hawke-san, you have wonderful aim."

"Hmm?" Hawke wasn't quite sure what he was talking about.

"All the pigs were killed with a shot through their ear," explained Sanji, coming to the table, "None of the good meat was spoiled."

"Oh yes," said Hawke, "A shot through the brain kills instantly, so they don't have to suffer."

"Hawke," slobbered Luffy, "You should catch birds that fly over the ship. Then we can have bird steak!"

"You can't make steaks out of bird meat," said Sanji and knocked Luffy on the head, making him choke on his mouthful and swell up his throat to get the food down.

This made everyone laugh.

"And besides," giggled Hawke, "Birds are the one animal I won't kill, especially for eating."

"Huh?" spluttered Luffy, "Why not?"

"I have a … respect for birds," said Hawke, "And I'd appreciate it if no one shot them down to eat them."

"Okay," sighed Luffy, pouting.

"So," said Hawke, turning to Nami, "How long until we reach the Red Line, navigator?"

Nami finished her fruit salad and put down her fork.

"Well, we still have quite a ways to go," she said, "I'd say about a week and a half, even if we stay on course."

"That's so long!" whined Luffy and dropped his head onto the table.

"That's the fastest we can get there," snapped Nami.

Luffy sighed very loudly.

"Hawke!" he shouted suddenly, jumping up, "Let's go train!"

"Let me finish my breakfast Luffy," Hawke laughed, "But sure, why not."

"Hurray!" cheered Luffy, "I'm going to get ready."

He ran out onto the deck.

Hawke scooped up the last of her fruit.

"Would you mind having an audience for your training session?" asked Zoro.

He had already finished his breakfast and was just sitting there.

"Sure," smiled Hawke, "I'm part of the crew now, so you should know how I fight."

Zoro nodded and made his way out to the deck, following Luffy.

"Wait a second Hawke-san," called Sanji as Hawke got up from the table, "You're using knives right? Luffy is susceptible to piercing attacks."

Hawke smiled.

"I know," she said, "When Luffy and I train, I use the handles of my knives instead of the blades, and he never hits me, he tries to pin me down."

"Oh okay," said Sanji, sounding reassured, "But if he scratches you he will regret it."

"Oh don't worry Sanji," laughed Hawke, heading for the door, "Luffy hasn't managed to pin me yet."


	6. Chapter 6: The Training Session

**Chapter 6**

**The Training Session**

Hawke exited the kitchen and stood on the deck.

Zoro was sitting by the railing again, where he had been sleeping the day before. But Luffy was nowhere to be seen.

Hawke reached into her jacket and pulled out two of her black knives. She scanned the deck and moved to the bottom of the stairs, no one. She looked up to the back of the ship; there was no one there either. She looked back to the deck and this time her gaze went up the mast.

"Hawke!" called a voice.

Luffy was standing on the crows' nest.

"There you are," Hawke called back.

Luffy grabbed onto the crows' nest edge and stretched his arms back, making himself into a catapult.

"I'll go first," he shouted and shot himself down towards Hawke.

Hawke took a step to the side and Luffy crashed into the deck.

"You still need to be more accurate Luffy," she called as she ran across the deck and positioned herself by the mast.

Aiming her first knife, she threw it towards one of Luffy's arms, which was still somewhat stretched, lying on the deck. She heard Zoro's swords clink together as he tensed.

Luffy unstretched his arm and the knife missed him. The handle hit the back wall, bouncing off and onto the deck.

"I'm faster now than I was then," said Luffy and stretched his arm back, "Gum Gum Bullet!"

He launched his punch at Hawke.

She jumped aside and let Luffy's arm fly past her. Then she jumped into the air and threw her other knife at Luffy's rapidly vanishing fist.

The hilt hit his wrist and knocked the punch off center, causing Luffy to lose his control.

Hawke then kicked Luffy's arm, which was still extending past her. The kick made Luffy's arm bounce off the mast, while his fist was still flying off course.

Luffy started to pull his arm back in. As his fist passed Hawke again, she drew three more knives from her coat. She launched them all at Luffy's fist. The first knife knocked Luffy's arm against the mast. The second and third knives landed blade down in the mast.

"Ha!" shouted Luffy, "You missed!"

Hawke smiled and she took out one more knife from her jacket.

Luffy paused.

"Hey, I can't move my arm?!" he exclaimed.

He looked towards the mast. His arm was stuck to it. He couldn't pull his arm away from the wood.

Hawke aimed her knife.

"You're still slower than me," she taunted as she threw it.

The knife spun through the air and hit Luffy right between the eyes, hilt first.

"Ouch!" cried Luffy, rubbing his head with his free hand, "That hurt!"

"I win!" laughed Hawke.

Zoro stood up.

"That knife should have bounced off Luffy," he said, coming over, "Why didn't it?"

Hawke smiled and picked up the knives that had fallen onto the deck and put them back in her jacket.

"These throwing knives were a gift from the marines that adopted me," she said.

She held out one and showed it to Luffy and Zoro.

The entire blade was black. And the hilt had gold filigree decorating the handle.

"They are made of very strong steel and coated with a special resin," she said, "But the reason they could hit Luffy, was that they contain pieces of sea prism stone at the tip of the blade and the end of the hilt," explained Hawke.

"Sea prism stone?" repeated Luffy.

"Yes," confirmed Hawke, "This stone drains a devil fruit users' power. Weapons that have them are able to hit any devil fruit user, even Logia types."

"Hmm," muttered Luffy, looking closely at the knife, "So it's a mystery stone..."

Zoro hit him on the head.

"Don't be stupid about this Luffy," he cautioned, "It's good that Hawke let us know about this type of stone. The Grand Line will probably be full of it, so your devil fruit powers will be in constant jeopardy."

Luffy stepped back and nodded.

Nami and Sanji came out on deck.

"Luffy," said Nami, pointing her finger, "Why is your arm stuck to the mast?"

"Oh right!" laughed Luffy, "Hawke what did you do?"

They walked over to the mast and looked at Luffy's arm.

The two knives that Luffy had thought had missed him were embedded, blade down, into the mast. But the angle at which they had landed had trapped Luffy's arm.

One had hit above Luffy's arm and was angled with the hilt downward. The other had landed under his arm and was angled up and across, immobilizing him.

"That's pretty clever," said Nami, "Luffy wouldn't be able to use that arm to fight, giving you a huge advantage."

"That was the plan," laughed Hawke as she removed the knives and freed Luffy's arm.

"That's a good way to fight," put in Zoro," "Using your wits as well as your weapons."

"Thanks," smiled Hawke.

"Don't worry," said Luffy, bringing his arm back to normal, "I'll get strong enough to beat you one day!"

Hawke laughed.

"As long as you can protect me, you don't have to be able to beat me," she told Luffy, "And now I know that I can have your back in a fight."

Luffy smiled.

"Now our crew is even better!" he shouted.

"Hey Luffy," said Sanji, "Stop shouting at the sky and start finding fish for lunch."

"Okay Sanji, Usopp will help," said Luffy, and he ran off to find his fishing rod.

"You're pretty capable," said Zoro, leaning against the railing.

"Well I've been training all my life," said Hawke.

"It's good that you're not a weak fighter like Nami or a coward like Usopp," Zoro continued, "The crew can depend on you."

Hawke blushed.

"You're so sweet Zoro," she said.

Zoro stiffened.

"What? I was just saying you were a good fighter, how is that sweet?" he stammered, turning away and facing the sea.

"Hawke-swan!" swooned Sanji, "You look so cute when you're embarrassed."

Zoro gave Sanji a death glare.

"I'm just always rendered helpless in the presence of a beautiful woman," sighed Sanji, "So cute, so cute, so cute…" he repeated as he wandered back into the ship.

"He's very sweet," sighed Hawke, looking after Sanji, "But does he always embarrass himself like this?"

"He's just a stupid pervert," snapped Zoro, taking out one of his swords and slicing the air, "I need to go train."


	7. Chapter 7: The Secret Revealed

**Chapter 7**

**The Secret Revealed**

The next day was hotter than usual.

Usopp was lying on the deck with a damp cloth over his eyes.

"I think I've caught the too-much-sun disease," he panted, "I might die."

"Oh, shut up Usopp," said Nami, "It isn't that hot out."

"You're one to talk," whined Usopp, "You're wearing a bikini. It's not fair."

"Well then take off your shirt or something," snapped Nami as she settled back into her lawn chair.

She looked at the empty chair beside her.

"I wonder what's taking Hawke so long?" she said, looking towards the closed door of her room.

"Hmm?" said Zoro, snapping out of his nap, "What's Hawke doing?"

Nami looked over at him.

"You'll enjoy this Zoro," she laughed, "I finally convinced Hawke to put on a bathing suit."

Nami watched as Zoro's face paled and then turned bright red.

"A… bathing suit…?" he stammered.

Usopp sat up.

"Like, a bikini bathing suit or an old lady bathing suit?" asked the sniper.

Zoro's face darkened and he towered over his crewmate.

"What does it matter Usopp?" he said threateningly.

"Woah, woah, calm down Zoro," whimpered Usopp, "I was just a bit excited at seeing Hawke in a bathing suit, aren't you?"

Zoro stalked away and sat down.

"That wasn't the point," he muttered.

Nami was enjoying this very much. She decided to tease Zoro even more.

"Oh Sanji," she called, watching the swordsman.

Zoro stiffened and raised his eyes to look at Nami. She thought he was going to kill her.

"Don't you dare," he breathed.

"But its so fun watching you get so worked up," pouted Nami, but she didn't call Sanji again.

"What? Who said I'm getting worked up?" snapped Zoro and he sat back down and closed his eyes.

After a few moments, Nami got up.

"I'm going to go see if anything's wrong," she said, "I was sure that I gave her the right size."

Zoro opened one eye, then closed it again.

Usopp was still lying on the deck.

"Hey, Luffy," said Usopp, "How did you and Hawke meet?"

Luffy was draped over the railing and had his tongue out like a dog.

"It's too hot," he panted and rolled off onto the deck.

"Hawke washed up to my village in a boat," started Luffy, sitting up, "She was all alone and so the bar lady, Makino, took her in to live with her. That was the same lady who was taking care of me too, so we grew up together."

"Sounds to me like you guys are brother and sister," said Usopp.

Luffy laughed.

"I do think of her as my little sister, even if she doesn't want me too," he said, "It would be nice to have a little sister, but Hawke doesn't think so."

Zoro opened his eyes again and smiled.

"So you have a little sister then," he said.

Luffy laughed.

"Yeah, just don't tell her."

Just then the door to Nami's room opened.

All three men sat up and turned their heads.

Nami emerged first. She looked serious and met each of the crew's gaze before she came and sat back down in her lawn chair.

Hawke came out after Nami.

Her eyes were a bit puffy and red, like she had been crying. But she stood tall and came down to the deck.

She was wearing one of Nami's bikinis. The top and bottom were a matching purple and the bottoms flared out as a skirt.

Hawke seemed very self-conscious and kept moving her arms and hands, like she didn't know where to put them.

Nami watched as Zoro stood up. His face was a bit flushed, but not as red as before.

"Hawke," he said, she looked up at him, her head was slightly bowed, "You shouldn't be embarrassed."

Hawke blushed and quickly sat down on her chair, pressing her back into it. Nami gave a little cough. Hawke looked at her and sat up a little. Nami smiled encouragingly.

Usopp lifted the cloth from his eyes.

"Woah Hawke!" he exclaimed, "You wear that leather jacket all the time. I never knew you were so curvy!"

Zoro walked over and slammed the hilt of his sword onto Usopp's head.

"Show some respect you idiot," he seethed.

"I'm sorry, Zoro," said Usopp into the floor, "I won't tell Hawke she's sexy ever again."

Zoro kicked him.

"What did I just tell you!"

There was a sudden crash from the kitchen.

Zoro turned.

"Not you, you damn cook!" he shouted.

But it was too late.

Sanji had leapt over to where Hawke was sitting and had taken her hand. Kneeling in front of her, he was looking her up and down.

"Hawke-swan!" he cried, "Your beauty is unparalleled! You have the body of a goddess."

"Stay away from her you pervert!" shouted Zoro.

Sanji was still moving his eyes up and down Hawke's figure.

"So curvy!" he exclaimed, "So round! So bouncy!"

Hawke covered herself with her hands.

"Please stop that Sanji," she said, turning her face away, "You're embarrassing me, I don't like it."

Sanji froze. He fell to his knees and started hitting his fists against the ground.

"I'm such a despicable human being," he cried, "I'm so vulgar when it comes to beauty! Now I've made Hawke-san angry with me."

"Yes," snapped Nami, waving her hand, "She is angry with you. Now go sit over there."

Sanji crawled away, crying.

"But I wasn't really angry with him," Hawke whispered to Nami, "He was just making me uncomfortable."

"Same thing," said Nami, dismissing Hawke's concerns with another wave of her hand, "He was being a nuisance. Now didn't you have something to show everyone?"

Hawke shrank a little.

"Huh?" said Zoro, sheathing his sword, which he had taken out before Nami had told Sanji to get lost, "Show us something?"

Hawke stood up again.

Zoro couldn't help checking her out. She was curvier than he had expected. Her form had always been hidden by her leather jacket.

Hawke didn't notice though, she was looking at the floor.

After an awkward silence, she took a breath.

"Can I tell you what that scientist did to me?" she asked in a shaky voice.

Zoro's heart started to beat harder.

"Are you sure?" asked Usopp.

Hawke held up her pearl necklace, which was still around her neck.

"This pearl used to be a liquid," she started, "It was used on me, on my skin. And it has a very special ability... I know for a fact that this is the only bit of formula in the world and all the instructions on how to make it have been burned away. All I have to do is destroy this last piece of evidence and no one will ever have to be put through the torture that I had to go through-," she stopped and shivered.

"Oi, Hawke?" asked Luffy, he had come up behind her, "What's this on your back?"

Hawke visibly winced.

"On her back?" asked Zoro.

Hawke clenched her fists and turned around so that her back was facing the crew.

"This is what I wanted to show you," she said, "These are my scars."

Zoro's eyes widened at what he saw, Usopp gawked and Sanji gasped.

Her back was covered in what looked like a black tattoo.

Two wings, starting in the middle of her shoulder blades and reaching up to her shoulders, went down the sides of her back, with their tips ending right where her skirt began.

"Wings?!" Sanji asked in awe.

Hawke was facing Luffy, but she spoke loudly enough for the whole crew to hear.

"Every drop of the formula pierces you to the bone. It hurts like no pain you can ever imagine-" tears started rolling down her cheeks.

"- and the scientist strapped me down and put drop after drop onto my back. He would keep going until I would pass out from the pain, only then would he stop. He said that I had to be conscious for it to work properly. He waited until I woke up again and then started reapplying it right away. I didn't eat for weeks and I lost my voice from screaming-" her voice was coming out in sobs now.

"- it took him a month to finish both sides. Near the end I could only stand three or four drops until the pain became overwhelming. When he finished applying the formula, I thought that the pain would be over, but then the wings had to make themselves a part of my body. My whole bone structure was altered. It felt like I was being stretch out by giants until I would break. He left me in my room for two weeks while the process completed itself."

Hawke had fallen to her knees and was sobbing so hard that she couldn't continue speaking. Nami got up and put a hand on her shoulders.

"There, see?" she was saying comfortingly to Hawke, "It's all out now, it's over, you don't have to repeat it ever again."

The rest of the crew was standing around the two girls. Zoro and Luffy had clenched fists and expressions of pain on their faces. Usopp was looking at Hawke and understanding why she had been so reluctant to share her story. Sanji was still on his knees, but his eyes were fixed on Hawke and he kept staring in disbelief.

"So this was the torture you went through?" Luffy finally broke the silence.

Hawke raised her head. She had stopped sobbing but tears were still streaming down her face.

"Mhmm," she nodded.

Then she saw the look in Luffy's eyes. She lunged out and grabbed his hand.

"Luffy," she cried, "Please promise me that you won't go after that man. Any of you," she added, looking over her shoulder at the crew.

There was silence again. Zoro tensed.

"You can't just expect us to do nothing to a man who put you through hell for his own pleasure!" snapped Zoro, his voice dripping with hatred.

"No!" cried Hawke again, still clenching Luffy's hand, "You have to promise me you won't go after him."

She stood up.

"He may have put me through hell," she said, her voice shaking, "But that's what was meant to be."

Zoro started and Luffy raised his head.

Hawke stood tall, the tears vanishing from her eyes. She met Luffy's gaze.

"What I went through made me who I am today. Without it, I would be a completely different person. I would be weak. Do not hunt down the man that made me stronger. Please, for me," she finished.

Luffy's eyes widened.

He unclenched his fists. Hawke noticed and she smiled.

"Thank you, Luffy," she said and held his hand in both of hers.

Zoro and Sanji, who had stood up, both took a step back.

They were amazed at Hawke. She had managed to _forgive_ the scientist. She was still smiling after all that she had gone through. She had asked them not to go after the man who had tortured her because he had made her stronger.

How could a person forgive anyone who had single handedly put them through so much suffering?

"She's actually forgiven him," said Sanji in astonishment.

"She is wiser than all of us," muttered Zoro, looking at the tattoo on Hawke's back.

He hesitated, and then spoke.

"Wings?" he asked.

Hawke stiffened and turned around.

"It isn't a total scar," she confessed, "Watch."

She climbed up and stood on the edge of the railing, her back to the sea.

"What are you doing?" asked Zoro, wary.

Hawke looked back at the crew.

"Watch," she said again.

Then she fell back.

"What!?" shouted Zoro, "Hawke!"

He sprang up and looked over the edge, followed by Sanji and Luffy.

Hawke wasn't in the water.

"I didn't hear a splash," said Nami, coming up with Usopp.

"Over here," they heard Hawke's voice.

"It came from the bow," said Sanji.

The crew ran up to the masthead.

Hawke was there, floating in the air, using two large black wings to keep herself aloft.

"What?!" shouted Luffy, "You can fly?! You have wings?!"

Everyone gaped at her.

"This is what the formula did to me," Hawke said as she turned around in the air to show them her back.

The tattooed wings were no longer on her skin. There were no marks on her back. But two black, feathered wings sprouted from between her shoulder blades.

"The tattoo became real?!" Usopp stammered in disbelief.

Hawke turned back around.

"Yes," she smiled and stepped onto the edge of the railing.

Zoro watched as the wings quickly shrank and disappeared behind her back. Hawke jumped back onto the deck. She turned her back towards the crew. It was covered by the tattooed wings again.

"That is what the formula does," said Hawke, "When it is put onto a person's skin, whatever is drawn with it will become real and a part of that person forever."

She lowered her eyes.

"I was his final test," she muttered, "There had been countless others before me. I found the records he kept of them."

Hawke wrapped her arms around herself.

"The things he drew on those poor people," she shuddered, her eyes wandering out to the ocean, "They either died from the transformation or killed themselves after, when they'd seen what they'd become."

Nami let out a shocked little gasp and raised her hand to cover her mouth.

Luffy, Zoro and Sanji just stood there, staring at her.

"Actually having wings isn't so bad," Hawke said, her eyes refocusing, "It's really fun and useful."

There was silence.

"So cool!" shouted Luffy and Usopp, "You can fly!"

Hawke smiled and looked relieved.

"That is really useful," said Nami, "And since it's not a devil fruit power, you can swim right?"

Hawke nodded.

"Yes and I can even use my wings under water to swim faster."

"So cool!" shouted Luffy again, "Take me for a ride!"

"So that explains why you're so light," said Zoro, "You must have hollow bones like a bird."

Hawke turned towards him. He was still staring at her, but she could see acceptance in his eyes.

She smiled.

"Yes, and that's also why I can see farther than you guys," she explained.

"And does this have something to do with why you can't eat birds?" asked Sanji.

Hawke nodded.

"I can talk to and understand them," she said, "So I really can't bring myself to hurt them."

"So cool!" gawked Usopp, "You can talk to birds!"

"And I'm guessing that you flew to that island the other day," said Zoro, "You didn't take the row boat."

Hawke lowered her eyes and nodded.

"Sorry for lying to you," she apologized.

"Don't worry about it," said Zoro, "I could tell you weren't telling the truth anyways."

Hawke blushed.

"I was never a good liar," she laughed.

"I can help you there," said Usopp, striking a pose, "I'm the greatest liar in the world."

"That's a lie," laughed Nami.

"Hawke!" shouted Luffy again, "Take me for a ride!"

Hawke laughed.

"Aye, aye Captain," she said.

"Yeah!" cried Luffy.

He wrapped each of his legs around Hawkes and his arms around her arms.

"Isn't that a little too close," muttered Zoro, glowering at Luffy.

"Alright Hawke," said Luffy, "Let's go!"

"Hang on tight," said Hawke as she brought out her wings again.

"Don't be too long," called Nami.

Hawke beat her wings and they were lifted off the deck.

"You're pretty light," Hawke told Luffy as they rose.

"Woah!" shouted Luffy, "Hey Usopp, you look so small from up here!"

Usopp waved.

Hawke flew out over the ocean.

"Hey, Luffy," she said.

"Yeah," came the reply.

"Thank you."

Luffy smiled.

"Don't mention it lil' sis," he said.

"I told you shouldn't call me call me that," warned Hawke, dipping towards the water.

"Hey, watch it," laughed Luffy.

"I'm not your little sister Luffy," said Hawke, zipping over the tops of the waves, "We don't share blood."

"Blood doesn't say who your family is," said Luffy, trying to grab a fish out of the water, "It's who you share your life with."

Hawke was silent.

"I have a big brother too," continued Luffy, "That's who I went to live with when Gramps took me away. But me and Ace don't have the same parents. So you're my little sister, even though we don't have the same parents."

Hawke's eyes widened.

"So, then…" Hawke paused, "Can you be my family?"

"Sure," laughed Luffy, "The Merry is our home now."

Luffy made another grab at a fish.

"Caught you!" he shouted.

"Easy Luffy," laughed Hawke, "I don't want to drop you."

Her heart was soaring higher than she could ever fly. She had a brother, two by the sounds of it, a family!

Hawke soared back into the air and scanned the horizon for the Going Merry.

"Wow, we're so far away already," said Luffy, shading his eyes.

"Yes, the wind is faster than the water," smiled Hawke.

She spotted the ship and set off towards it.

"Look Sanji, I caught a fish right out of the water," Luffy unwound himself from Hawke and held out the fish.

"That's a nice size," said Sanji, examining the fish.

He turned his attention to Hawke.

"Hawke-san! May I have a ride too!" he swooned.

"No Sanji," said Luffy.

Sanji looked taken aback. The rest of the crew looked stunned.

"You have to cook this fish," commanded the captain.

Everyone relaxed.

"Oh, he was thinking about the fish," sighed Usopp.

Sanji took the fish and headed to the kitchen, sulking.

"The water is really calm today," said Zoro, looking out to sea.

Hawke came up beside him.

"It's beautiful, like a mirror," she said, looking down into the water.

Zoro looked down at her. She was still wearing her bathing suit.

"Yeah," he said.

Hawke noticed his glance and blushed.

"I'm glad I don't have to hide it from you guys anymore," she said, motioning to her back.

"You never did, you know," said Zoro, "We would have accepted you no matter what since you're Luffy's sis- uh, I mean friend."

Hawke giggled, then sighed and looked out at the sea.

"It's okay. I've decided Luffy is my big brother," she said, "I feel like I'm home."

Zoro smiled.

"Welcome to the crew," he said.

Hawke met his gaze and smiled.

"Thank you," she said.

Zoro blushed and scratched the back of his head.

"Zoro?" began Hawke, looking down at the waves.

"Yeah?"

"Do you think you could help me train my one-sword style?" she asked.

"Sure," said Zoro, "As long as you can keep up with me."

Hawke turned to face him and stood as tall as she could.

"I know I can," she stated, a determined look on her face, extending her hand.

Zoro laughed.

"Alright then," he said, taking Hawke's outstretched hand and shaking it.

"Okay," smiled Hawke.

Zoro yawned.

"I think I'll have a nap," he muttered.

Zoro sat with his back leaning against the rail, his arms crossed behind his head.

Hawke smiled.

She made to go back to the lawn chair, but cast a glance at the horizon and stopped short.

"What is that?" she asked, leaning out over the railing, straining and squinting.

"Huh?" asked Nami as she came up to the rail, "What do you see?"

"Just a second," mumbled Hawke.

She spread her wings and flew up to the crow's nest.

"I can see a big flock of birds," she called down, "They seem to be circling something… I can't make it out."

Sanji came out on deck.

"They say birds often flock around schools of fish that swim close to the surface," said the cook, lighting a cigarette.

"Fish!" exclaimed Luffy, running up to the bow, "I'll get it."

He stretched his arm way back and shot it out over the water.

Hawke watched his hand approach the flock.

"Got it!" Luffy shouted and started pulling his arm back.

"Oi, oi!" exclaimed Sanji, "Watch it!"

Luffy's arm wasn't quite unstretched by the time his hand got to the Merry. His fist kept flying backwards with the momentum and hit Zoro where he had been napping, flinging him out over the deck and into the sea.

"Oh, sorry Zoro," Luffy mumbled.

"I'll get him," sighed Usopp.

He threw a grappling hook and dragged Zoro up on deck with it.

"I'll kill him," Zoro panted as he lay on his back.

Hawke giggled and flew back down to the deck.

The crew gathered around what Luffy had picked up.

"Well, that's not a fish," said Sanji.

They had caught a small girl in a yellowy-brown robe and tall, white hat.

"She doesn't look to good," said Nami, "Let's get her into the kitchen."


	8. Chapter 8: To Gunkka Island!

**Chapter 8**

**To Gunkka Island!**

Hawke was up in the crow's nest, gazing, unseeing, at the horizon.

So much had happened within the past few days. She had found her long lost friend, and then had that friend turn into her brother.

While she had had guardians throughout her life, like Makino or the marine couple, she had never felt quite as comfortable with them as she did when she was with Luffy. He had been the one to make her laugh and the one who had gotten her in and out of mischief. Luffy had been the one who'd try to bandage her hands when she first started knife throwing. He had done an awful job, but it had made Hawke so happy.

She smiled and felt a tear slide down her cheek. She was the little sister of Monkey D. Luffy! And Ace! She wondered when she would meet her other brother.

Hawke made a mental note to ask Luffy more about Ace.

Just then, Hawke was pulled out of her reverie by a commotion in the galley.

"I wonder what that's all about?" she muttered as she flew down to the deck and made her way to the cabin.

She was met with a very amusing scene.

The girl they had rescued earlier seemed to have woken up. She was sitting bolt upright and was staring in horror at Usopp.

The sniper was lying on the floor, holding his nose and whimpering in pain.

"I did that?" the little girl asked shakily.

"Don't feel bad," said Nami warmly.

"You're so mean, Nami," mumbled Usopp.

Hawke let out a giggle.

The girl turned to see what had made the sound and froze again. Her expression of horror returned.

"What is with her?" Zoro snapped.

"I think she just noticed how many of us were in here," said Hawke as she closed the door behind her.

She approached the girl.

"How are you feeling?" she asked.

"Umm…," the girl mumbled.

The crew stared at the girl, the girl stared at them.

"This is boring!" exclaimed Luffy, jumping up, "Let's go find some treasure! Or meat! Let's find meat!"

"Treasure..?" the girl looked at Luffy, then her eyes widened, "You guys are pirates?!"

"Yeah," said Luffy, looking down at her.

The girl stared at him for a few moments, the she fell back onto the bed.

"Is she okay?" asked Usopp.

Hawke bent over the little girl.

"She's fainted," she said, pulling the covers over her, "Let's let her rest some more."

The girl slept the rest of the day and the crew went to sleep when the sun fell below the horizon.

Hawke was taking a cat nap up on the sail, leaning against the crow's nest.

She didn't wake when Luffy tried to raid the fridge, but when Sanji turned on the light in the kitchen and started moving the dishes around, she was roused from her sleep.

It seems that everyone had been woken. When Hawke got down to the kitchen, the rest of the crew was already there.

"Not exactly how you pictured us is it?" Nami was telling the girl.

The girl shook her head.

Hawke noticed the dishes on the table.

"Got hungry?" she smiled at the girl.

"This is Apis-san," said Sanji, handing Hawke a cup of tea.

"It's very nice to meet you," said Hawke, greeting Apis.

Apis blinked.

"It's nice to meet you too," she mumbled at her hands.

"What's with the long face?" asked Nami, "Is there somewhere you need to go?"

Apis looked up, her eyes smiling.

"Yes!" she exclaimed, "Are you really going to take me home?!"

"Well where are you from?" laughed the navigator.

"Gunkka Island!" cried Apis.

Nami consulted her charts.

"Well that's not that far from here," she said, glancing over to Luffy, "What do you say, Captain?"

Luffy looked down at Apis' expectant face.

"Sure, why not!" he smiled.

"Thank you!" cried Apis.

"Alright, my lady," said Sanji, "I think it's time we all went back to bed."

"Okay," said the little girl, rubbing her eyes.

The crew went back to their beds and settled back down for the rest of the night.


	9. Chapter 9: An Unexpected Delay

**Chapter 9**

**An Unexpected Delay**

The next day, the Strawhats turned their heading towards Gunkka Island.

Almost immediately, however, they were set upon by the Marines.

"Watch out!" shouted Hawke from the crow's nest, "They're coming up fast!"

"There's no way we can stay ahead of them like this," said Nami, glancing worriedly behind them.

"Incoming fire!" yelled Hawke.

Four cannon balls were launched at the Merry. Luffy jumped up, inflated himself and deflected one. Zoro and Sanji both destroyed one each.

"Watch out!" screamed Nami, as the fourth fell towards the deck.

Hawke jumped out of the crow's nest and retrieved her sword from under her jacket. She sliced through the cannon ball, jumped into the space between the two pieces and kicked them as hard as she could. The pieces fell to either side, narrowly missing the railings of the Merry.

"Nice one!" Luffy shouted over to Hawke.

She smiled.

Just then, another cannon ball hit close to the ship. Hawke grabbed onto the railing as the deck heaved to and fro.

Just then a flock of gulls landed on the roof of the galley. Hawke glanced at them.

"A big wind is coming," one of the gulls said, looking at her.

Hawke blinked.

"A big wind is coming," it repeated, looking down to the deck.

Hawke followed the birds gaze.

"Why is it looking at Apis?" she muttered.

Just then Apis turned to Nami.

"There's going to be a big wind," she said to the navigator.

"What?" asked Nami, staring at Apis.

"What?!" gasped Hawke, "Apis can understand birds too?"

Nami was still staring at Apis.

Hawke raised her voice.

"Nami!" she shouted, drawing the navigators gaze.

She nodded her head. Nami blinked, then she started barking orders to Luffy and Usopp.

"There's going to be a sudden squall," she shouted, "We'll ride it out of here."

No sooner had the sails been unfurled, than a gust of wind almost as strong as the one that had ravaged Loguetown blew in.

The Merry, being the smaller ship, easily caught the wind and sped far ahead of the Marines.

Hawke made her way up to the crow's nest and scanned the horizon.

"They're not following us!" she cried.

"Alright!" shouted Luffy.

"Hang on," said Zoro cautiously.

"What is it, Zoro?" asked Hawke as she flew down to the deck.

But as she took off, she gasped and almost fell down and hit the deck. She caught herself just before she hit.

Hawkes eyes widened and she stared out at the sea.

"You noticed to," said Zoro, "The wind has stopped, we've been floating here for some time."

"What?!" said Nami nervously.

Then a sudden realization dawned on her and she screamed.

"What's wrong Nami!" shouted Luffy, hurrying over to where the navigator was standing.

"We… we're in the Calm Belt!" she shrieked.

"Huh?" said Usopp.

Hawke ran over to the rail, where Apis was standing.

"Something's coming," the little girl whispered, looking into the water.

"You don't understand," Nami was still yelling, "There's no wind here, how is a sailing ship supposed to sail?! And not only that but –"

Suddenly the sea around them exploded!

Waves tossed the Merry and her crew about. When the sea finally calmed down enough so that they could stay standing, the crew looked out and gasped.

There were sea kings all around their boat.

"This place is the sea king breeding ground," Nami finished, almost hysterically.

"This isn't good," said Hawke, noticing a frog-like sea king caught sight of their ship.

The crew screamed as the giant frog leaped towards them. It could have easily squashed them under its belly.

But before it could land, the Merry shot up into the air once again.

"What is going on?!" wailed Usopp, tumbling around the deck.

Just then Apis let out a scream.

She had fallen off the ship!

"Hang on!" shouted Luffy as he reached out his arm towards her.

He grabbed onto Apis and began pulling her back. But as he was doing so, they heard Apis yell something to him.

"Throw me over there!" she shouted, pointing at something below the ship.

Luffy changed his direction and did as she said.

Apis flew out of sight below the Merry. It was then that Hawke realized what was going on. They had been lifted up on the nose of another giant sea king!

Apis flew into the sea kings nostril and pulled out a nose hair.

The she ricocheted back to the ship and landed on Luffy in heap.

"What did you do that for?!" shouted Nami, "Now he'll be angr-,"

Just then there was a giant lurch and the sea king sneezed. The force of the sneeze shot the Merry high and far into the air and the ship flew over a huge mass of surfacing sea kings.

The ship began to descend and crashed back into the water, sending everyone flying once more.

As the crew regained their balance again, they felt a warm breeze blow through the sails.

"The winds back!" exclaimed Hawke, "We must have got blown out of the Calm Belt by that sneeze."

She glanced over at Apis.

"Good thinking back there," she smiled at the little girl.

"Thanks," said Apis.

"We're saved," sighed Nami, collapsing into a deck chair, "Let's just get to Gunkka Island now."

"Yeah, no more distractions," stated Apis.

"It's not like this was our fault!" Nami fumed at her.

"I'm sorry," whimpered Apis, cowering in fear.

Usopp went to the helm and corrected their course.

The returning wind seemed to be happy they were back because it blew them quickly towards their goal. By the afternoon, they had set anchor in the bay in front of Apis' village.


	10. Chapter 10: A Shocking Encounter

**Chapter 10**

**A Shocking Encounter**

The villagers were wary at first, but when they learned that the Strawhats meant no harm and that they were returning Apis, they let the pirates come ashore. Apis' grandfather invited them up to his house for some pork buns, and of course Luffy accepted this offer.

But Hawke felt a little uneasy. Even before she'd set foot on this island she had felt something strange. It was a sort of soft hum. It was quiet, but constant. She had felt it as they approached the island, but now she was almost unable to ignore it.

"It's almost as if I can feel it," she muttered, rubbing her arms.

"Luffy!" she called after the crew making their way into the village.

"Yeah, Hawke?" she heard the captains reply.

"I'm going to stick around the Merry," she said, "Bring me back one of those pork buns."

"Okay," shouted Luffy as he waved.

Hawke smiled.

"He has nothing but food on his mind", she smiled to herself.

Hawke waved at the villagers as they started to return to their daily business.

She made her way around the shoreline, following the beach.

"What is this feeling?" she muttered.

She felt like there were eyes on her, but not in the literal sense. She felt like someone was _thinking_ about her, so much so that it felt like eyes boring into her back.

Hawke whirled around.

There was nothing behind her but the empty beach and the Merry.

Hawke turned and continued on her walk. She didn't feel reassured in the least.

Making her way into the forest that covered the island, she followed the edge of a rocky cliff. As the cliff started to bend, a ledge began to come out of it. Hawke checked its sturdiness with her foot.

She was just about to step onto it when she heard a voice above her.

"It's you!" exclaimed the voice.

Hawke jumped back and quickly drew a knife out of her jacket.

She scanned the trees overhead and the forest around her. There was no one.

"Come to me," the voice spoke again.

It was a deep, gravelly voice. Like that of an old man who could still sing.

Hawke tensed.

"Where are you?!" she shouted into the forest.

There was no answer. Instead the humming grew noticeably louder.

"Who are you?!" asked Hawke, still scanning her surroundings.

There was still no answer.

Hawke made to turn and go back to the Merry. She wanted to get out of here.

Just then the humming stopped altogether. Hawke froze as she heard a call coming from high up the mountain. It wasn't a human's voice, it was a deep rumbling groan, almost as if the mountain itself was talking.

"Come."

Hawke shivered and looked up. Through a gap in the trees she could see the alternating peaks of the mountain they had seen while sailing towards the island.

She thought for a moment.

"I'm curious now," she confessed, "But this could be really dangerous, especially since I don't think that was a human."

The humming returned. And this time, as Hawke listened to it, she thought she could make out different notes and changes in the tone.

"Is someone singing?" she wondered, looking back up the mountain.

Hawke made her decision.

"Maybe I can find out what this humming noise is all about," she said, encouraging herself as she climbed.

There was a rough trail leading up the sides of the mountain. Even so, the climb was more tiring that Hawke had anticipated.

"Phew," she panted, wiping the sweat out of her eyes, "I better hurry if I want to get back before sundown."

Returning to her climb, she rounded a bend and was suddenly facing a large crevice.

She stood still for a moment, listening.

_The humming is definitely coming from in there,_ she thought.

Hawke tiptoed quietly forward.

"I wish I brought a lantern," she muttered as the darkness closed in around her.

There was a sudden rustling sound from within the depths of the cave.

"Come, my child."

"That voice again," gasped Hawke, "It's really loud this time."

She started cautiously forward again, feeling her way along the wall.

A few moments passed and she could make out a faint light ahead.

Hawke peeked around a boulder and took in the sight before her. She let out a little shriek and stumbled backwards, falling onto the cave floor.

Before her was a huge animal. Hawke could see its body rising and falling with its breath.

The body, filling almost the entire cave, was covered in pale green, stiff feathers. The animals head was resting on the ground. It was also a pale green colour, but instead of a beak, the creature had a lizard like jaw, with sharp teeth protruding from between its lips. It had a bald head with long white hair growing from around the base of it. And the creature had large golden eyes; eyes which had found her as soon as she had peeked around the corner.

Hawke sat on her knees facing the creature. She was scared, but also in awe.

_This is definitely a legendary creature,_ she thought.

"My child," the deep, rumbling voice came from the slightly open jaws.

Hawke gawked.

"It was you?!" she gasped.

"I had never expected to meet you," the creature continued.

Hawke blinked.

"What?" she hesitated.

The creature lifted its head off the ground slightly.

"You are much younger than I thought you would be at this time," it said, "Although, time is often hard to grasp for a Millennium Dragon."

Hawke gasped.

"You're a Millennium Dragon?!" she exclaimed, "I thought those were a myth."

"There are no myths," said the dragon, blinking its large eyes.

Hawke stiffened.

"Wait," she said haltingly, "How can I understand you if you're a dragon?"

The dragon looked at her.

"What is the name you have been given?" it asked.

"Umm… my name is Hawke," she stuttered.

"Hmm," the dragon hummed, "Not a bad name. I am Ryu."

"Ryu," Hawke whispered.

"Hawke-child, you must awaken yourself and right the wrong in this world," Ryu rumbled, "You must realize who you are. I can see that this has not happened yet."

"Umm," Hawke stuttered again, "What are you talking about?"

She was totally lost.

"You are our child," the dragon growled, "You are the one needed to restore balance."

The dragon's eyes seemed to have glazed over.

"You must fix this!" it rumbled loudly, "Bring me back to the Dragons Nest!"

Ryu opened his jaws even wider and lunged towards Hawke.

She shrieked and rolled out of the way.

The dragon's snout hit the wall behind her and she heard him grunt.

"Now where did that lunch go?" he growled loudly, his jaws gaping.

Hawke stood up and started backing out of the cave.

"There you are!" exclaimed Ryu as his eyes focused on Hawke again, "Come back here, I am hungry! Apis hasn't been visiting!"

"Apis?" wondered Hawke, "Did I hear that right? Did he say Apis?"

But she didn't have much time to think about this any further. The Millennium Dragon was still trying to reach out to eat her.

"Come closer, you tasty morsel," grumbled the dragon.

Hawke backed up again.

"I'm sorry, but I can't do that," she said and she turned and ran out of the cave.

As Hawke stumbled out, she realized that it was dark, the sun had set.

_I need to get back to the Merry_, was the only thought that pushed itself through her clouded mind. And she started down the mountain.


	11. Chapter 11: Captured!

**Chapter 11**

**Captured!**

Hawke made her way down the mountain in a daze.

What was she going to tell the crew? Would they even believe her? Did she believe herself? Why was there a dragon hidden away on this island and why did he seem to be going crazy?

She retraced her steps across the beach.

"Well I think he's losing his mind… the way he was talking to me," she muttered, "I have no idea what he was saying."

She stumbled her way back onto the Merry.

"Where is everyone?" she mumbled.

Darkness had already fallen and the ship was still and silent.

Hawke checked the boys' room. The hammocks were empty.

"Nami?" she called quietly, knocking on the door to Nami's room.

There was no answer.

Hawke stood there, bewildered, for a moment.

Where did everybody go?

"Surely they can't still be in the village?" she wondered aloud.

Just then she heard footsteps on the deck behind her.

"There you are," she exclaimed as she turned.

But she was not greeted by her crewmates.

Hawke stood facing the swords of three marine soldiers.

She let out a little gasp and stepped back.

"Where do you think you're going?" she heard a sudden voice from behind her.

Someone grabbed her hands and forced them behind her back. She felt them being tied together.

"Oh no!" she whispered frantically, "Let me go!"

"Not a chance, pirate," retorted one of the marines, "You are under arrest for terrorizing this village."

"What?" exclaimed Hawke, "But I haven't done anything!"

"That's what they all say," laughed a second marine, "Now come with us."

Hawke was given a little shove and made to exit the ship.

"I can't climb down the ladder like this," she said, trying to raise her tied hands.

"Just get down there," snapped the marine behind her, grabbing the collar of her jacket and dangling her over the side of the ship

"W- Wait a second!" she exclaimed.

"Geez, you're as light as a feather," commented the marine holding her.

Two other marines descended the rope ladder. When they reached the ground, they turned and held out their arms.

Hawke was dropped unceremoniously to the waiting marines.

"Watch yourself!" said one of the marines as he caught her.

Hawke grunted and stood up.

"Thank you," she said tersely.

She had to get a grip on herself. This wasn't the time to be spaced out.

Hawke stood and looked at the marines that surrounded her.

There were four of them. The last one was coming down the ladder now.

Did Luffy and the others get captured too? She thought.

No, she decided, there would have been quite the scene if that had been the case. She would have heard it even if she had been up the mountain.

"Alright, move it," the guard behind her said.

Hawke set off, a marine on every side, and was escorted back up the beach and around the point.

There were four Marine ships anchored in the next bay.

Hawke was led onto one of them and brought before the navy captain.

"We've captured one of the Strawhats, Commander, sir!" stated the marine in front of Hawke.

He stepped aside so Hawke could be seen.

The marine captain stared down at her.

"Are you sure she's with the Strawhats?" he barked to an officer.

"We have no record of there being two women on the crew, sir," said the officer, "But we know that she was travelling with the Strawhats and is friendly with them."

"Hmph," the captain grunted, "Well, put her in the holding cell for now. We'll go into the village and capture the rest of the crew in the morning."

"Now just hold on a moment," said a man behind the captain.

Hawke saw the captain's expression darken.

"What do you want Erik?" he snapped.

The man, with thin dark glasses and slick grey hair that was standing up in a squiggle, approached Hawke.

"What were you doing on this island?" he asked, "You didn't go into the village, so where did you go that made you so upset?"

Hawke blinked.

How do they know so much already? She thought, and do I look upset?

"I don't know what you're talking about," she said to Erik.

The man pursed his lips and took a step closer to her.

"You know something. Where are the dragons?!" he scowled at her.

Hawke took a step back.

"I wouldn't tell you even if I knew!" she exclaimed, "What do you want with myths?"

Erik raised his hand and slapped her across the face.

"Insolent girl," he hissed, "There are no myths, not when it concerns the elixir of immortality!"

Hawke stumbled back and fell against the wall, gasping for air.

"Now hang on, Erik!" interceded the commander, "There's no need for violence. The girl doesn't know anything."

He nodded to a marine standing off to the side. He came over and helped Hawke to her feet.

"She will be put in the holding cells until we capture the Strawhats," the captain continued, "If she is confirmed as one of their crew she will be arrested along with them. If not, then I see no law that she has broken, she will be released."

Hawke looked at the marine captain. She could tell that he didn't like that Erik man at all. He seemed to be pretty fair in his sense of justice.

As Hawke was led out of the room she passed Erik, who was standing dejectedly near the door.

"I'll find what you found on that island," he whispered threateningly, "You can't keep the key to the elixir all to yourself."

Hawke glared at him.

She was led to a lower level of the ship that contained many barred cells.

The marine put her in one in the far corner.

"Can't I be in one of the ones closer to light?" she asked, shivering.

"This is protocol Miss Pirate," stated the marine as he untied her hands from behind her back and retied them in front of her body.

"Oh, well," Hawke sighed, "Thank you, my arms were getting sore. And my name is Hawke; please don't call me Miss Pirate."

"I'm sorry, Miss Hawke," stuttered the marine.

Hawke smiled and sat down on the only stool in her cell.

The marine stood with his back to the cell.

"Are you guarding me?" she asked the marine's back.

She saw him stiffen.

"Uh- we aren't supposed to engage the prisoners," the marine said without turning.

"So I am a prisoner," said Hawke.

She got up and looked around.

Other than the stool, there was a small cot along one side of her cell and a bucket in the opposite corner.

Gross, thought Hawke as she looked at the bucket.

Two sides of her cell were made of wooden planks; they were part of the ship's hull. In one of the walls, there was a small porthole, just above the water line.

Hawke went over and looked out the window.

The sky outside was still dark. It must be really late, Hawke thought, yawning, I wonder where everyone is…

She could see her reflection in the dark glass. The spot where Erik had hit her was already bruising. She traced the outline of the bruise with her finger, wincing when she passed over a tender spot.

She turned and addressed the marine's back again.

"So why exactly have I been imprisoned?" she asked.

"You were arrested under suspicions of being a pirate or associating with pirates," said the marine.

"Oh," said Hawke.

She shuffled her feet, wondering how she could escape and get back to Luffy. Suddenly a thought struck her.

"Why are there _four_ navy ships on this tiny little island? That seems like an awful lot. Is something bad happening?"

The marine's back stiffened again.

"I can't give out information on the navy's actions to non-navy persons," the marine stuttered.

"You really like your protocol don't you," Hawke sighed, lying back on her bed, "Can you at least tell me why that Erik guy hit me? What does he want with this island? He doesn't seem to be one of you…"

There was a pause.

Hawke glanced over at the marine. He seemed to be debating with himself.

She decided to try and influence his decision. Maybe he would tell her something useful.

"Ouch," she groaned, holding her cheek, "Do you have anything I could numb my cheek with?"

The marine turned to look into the cell.

Hawke pinched her bruise to bring on some tears and gave him her puppy eyes.

Hawke saw a look of concern pass over the marine's face.

"I'll see if I can get some ice," he said and left the door of her cell.

Hawke waited until she couldn't hear his footsteps anymore, and then she jumped up and went over to the door of her cell.

"The lock isn't very sturdy," she muttered to herself, analyzing the thin metal casing.

She took a knife out of her jacket and started fiddling with the back of the lock.

"I wonder why they didn't even search me?" she said aloud, "The security in the Navy isn't that great."

The tip of her knife caught at the seam of the metal sheet covering the back of the lock. She began peeling it back to reveal its inner workings.

"That was easy," she smiled.

Just then, she heard footsteps returning down the hall.

Hawke quickly pushed the metal back into place and sat back down on the bed.

The marine who'd been guarding her returned, carrying a cloth bundle in his hand.

"Here," he said, holding the bundle between the bars, "This should numb the pain and stop the swelling."

Hawke got up and took the bundle from him. It turned out to be an ice pack.

"Thank you so much," Hawke smiled as she held the bundle up to her cheek, "It feels better already."

The marine smiled, then checked himself and turned his back to the cell again.

"You're welcome," he said.

Hawke eyed his back.

"Could I at least know the name of this nice marine?" she asked politely.

"My name is Meeko, Miss Hawk," said the marine, still facing away.

But Hawke could hear his voice getting softer.

"Well then, Meeko," she said moving closer to the bars, "Do you know why that mean man hit me? I don't know what I did."

Meeko's shoulders fell and he turned to face her.

Hawke smiled.

"Well I guess you have a right to know why you were assaulted," he said, "Erik isn't a member of our unit, he works for Commodore Nelson Royale, the leader of the 8th division. I hear that he was in charge of kidnapping a small girl from this island."

"Apis?" gasped Hawke, "We just returned her to this village."

Meeko glanced at her.

"Well, Erik was just hired to do Royale's dirty work," he continued, smirking, "He's after the elixir of immortality, which he thinks he can make from the bones of a dragon."

So he kidnapped Apis to force her to show him where Ryu is hiding, Hawke realized.

She looked at the floor.

"So I must have made him quite upset," she mumbled, "He probably thinks I know something about that."

"He's a lowlife who shouldn't be employed by the marines," snapped Meeko.

Hawke gave him another smile.

"Thanks for explaining it to me," she said, backing away.

"No problem Miss Hawke," said Meeko, turning around again.

"You don't need to call me "Miss"," laughed Hawke as she sat down on the cot.

She used the silence that followed to finally digest all the information that had been thrust upon her in the past few hours.

It sounded like Apis knew about the dragon, Ryu had said she hadn't been visiting him. And she probably hadn't been visiting because she had been kidnapped by the marines. It sounded like this Royale guy wanted the elixir of immortality and found out about Apis and the Millennium Dragon.

That's probably why there are so many marine ships here, she thought. They probably want to raid the island and try to capture Ryu.

And then her thoughts turned to the dragon himself. He had said a lot of things that made no sense to Hawke. He had called her his child. She didn't know if he meant it literally or if it was just something he called everybody younger than himself. He had said she was the key to peace and that he wanted her to bring him back to a place called the Dragon's Nest. Although Hawke was pretty sure that by that point in the conversation he had gone a bit senile. He had tried to eat her after that, after all.

Then something about the confrontation with Erik came back to her. He had said "there are no myths", the exact same thing that Ryu had said back up the mountain. Could that be more than just a coincidence? She thought.

Hawke gave up trying to make sense of what Ryu had told her and focused on a more pressing matter. Where was the rest of the crew?! Hawke hadn't heard anything about them from the marines. Which is good I guess, she thought, that means they haven't been found. She wondered if they had found out about Apis' secret.

"I hope they're okay," she whispered.

"Did you say something?" asked Meeko, tilting his head towards the cage.

"No," said Hawke apologetically, "I was just hoping my friends are okay."

"Oh, okay," Meeko shrugged.

Then he turned to face the cage again.

"Are you really a pirate?" he asked.

Hawke blinked.

"I think it would be best if you didn't know anything about me," she said quietly.

Even if he was nice to her, he was still a marine.

"You just really don't look the part, if you are," added Meeko.

"What's that supposed to mean?" asked Hawke, a little offended.

The marine let out a little chuckle.

"You're just too cute to be a pirate," he said.

Hawke, who had been standing, flustered, in the middle of her cell, lowered her eyes and shuffled her feet.

"Oh," she mumbled, then she put her hands on her hips, "Well I can be pretty fierce in a pinch."

"Well then I don't want to be on your bad side," laughed Meeko.

Hawke smiled.

"Well, there's not much I can do in here," she said and walked over to the bed, "I'm going to try to get some sleep."

"Okay," said Meeko, returning to his post, "Sleep well."

"Thanks," Hawke mumbled as she lay down.

Despite her predicament, Hawke was asleep moments after her head hit the pillow.


	12. Chapter 12: The Dragon's Nest

**Chapter 12**

**The Dragon's Nest**

Hawke woke to bright sunlight shining directly into her face.

"Ugh," she groaned and rolled over.

"See?" she heard a voice say, "There's no way she could be a pirate. I feel bad keeping her in a cell."

Hawke's ears perked up, but she stayed lying still, pretending to be asleep.

The voice, which she thought was Meeko's was speaking again.

"I mean, if we're guarding her for no reason, then it would make not being able to go on the raid even worse."

"I know," said another voice Hawke hadn't heard before, "It could have been us who captured the Strawhats."

"Yeah," sighed Meeko, "But I don't know why the commander took the whole unit. There was almost no one left to guard the ships. It seems a little bit excessive."

"Well I heard that Erik told him to," said the other man grunted, "Man, I wish he would just leave us alone. It sucks that he has more authority than the Commander."

"Yeah," agreed Meeko, "I thought the Commander was going to lose it when Erik slapped her."

So they've gone to try to capture Luffy and Ryu by the sounds of it, thought Hawke, I need to get out of here.

She sat up and stretched.

"Good morning," she said yawning.

"Glad you're awake," said Meeko.

He was sitting at the door of her cell. And the other man was standing, leaning on the door of the cell opposite Hawke's.

Hawke sat for a moment.

"It sure seems quiet around here this morning," she commented.

"Well most of the men are out capturing the Strawhats," said the man who was standing.

"I see," said Hawke, then she looked at Meeko, "Were you up all night?"

"No, not all night," he replied, "Gavin here replaced me at three o'clock."

"You must be tired then," said Hawke to Gavin.

He shrugged his shoulders.

"I've had the morning shifts for a long time," he said, "I'm used to it now."

So I guess you won't be falling asleep on the job then, Hawke sighed to herself.

Just then her stomach gave a small growl.

"Umm," she said blushing, "Do you guys have anything I could eat for breakfast?"

"Of course," said Meeko, "We can't let our lovely detainee go hungry."

He got up and exited the holding cells.

"So, Lovely Detainee," teased Gavin, "Looks like you have Meeko wrapped around your little finger."

"He's been nice to me," responded Hawke, glancing warily at him through the bars, "I see no reason to be rude to him."

"Hmph," Gavin grunted and leaned back against the opposite cell.

Hawke got up and stretched, then made her way over to her little window.

The day was sunny and bright. She had to squint to see through the light shining off the water.

Through the glare, Hawke could make out a silhouette in the sea just around the bend of the island. She squinted even harder, trying to make out the shape.

She could see the outline of a ship. She shielded her eyes with her hand.

A cloud passed over the sun for a moment. Hawke blinked as the ship suddenly came into focus.

What is the Going Merry doing over there?! She gaped, its setting sail!

She turned around suddenly.

"I have to go to the bathroom," she stated, trying not to sound panicky.

Gavin pointed at the bucket.

"There's no way I'm using that!" retorted Hawke, "That's disgusting!"

"Well that's your problem," snapped Gavin, folding his arms across his chest.

Hawke glared at him. He smirked.

Just then Meeko returned.

"Here you are Miss Hawke," he said and held out an apple and a bowl of cereal through the bars.

"Thanks," smiled Hawke, "But I really have to go to the bathroom."

Meeko's face fell.

"I'm sorry," he said, "But we aren't allowed to take you out of your cell unless it's under the commanders orders."

Hawke groaned, but she took the food being held out for her and sat down on her bed.

I can't sit around here, she thought frantically as she ate her breakfast, I need to get back to Luffy!

She finished her food and handed the dishes back to Meeko, thanking him again. Then she went back over to the window. The Merry was further away.

Where are they going? She thought, clenching her fists, weren't they going to wait for her?

Just then they heard a man yell down the hall.

"All hands on deck! The pirates are escaping!"

"What?!" exclaimed Meeko and Gavin together.

They glanced at each other and then ran up on deck, without giving Hawke a single thought.

"Perfect!" she whispered and took out her knife.

She peeled back the casing on the lock again and looked at the locking mechanism.

"This should do it," she muttered as she wedged the tip of her blade into the space between the spring and the latch holding the lock down.

As she pushed down, the spring shot out of the lock, narrowly missing her ear.

"Whew," she panted as the lock fell out of place.

Hawke pulled on the door and it swung inwards.

"Alright," she whispered and snuck out of the holding room.

Hawke made her way up through the ship. She was being as quiet as she could, and she didn't run into any marines on her way.

"They must all be on the deck or on the island," she muttered.

She retraced her steps from the night before and ended up at the door that lead out to the deck. Standing on tiptoes, she peeked through the window in the door.

There were about twenty marines running around the deck, getting ready to start sailing. She saw Meeko and Gavin climbing up the rigging to unfurl the sails.

"They're going to chase after the Merry," Hawke realized, "If I can get out there, I can jump over board and get on the Merry when they get close enough."

Hawke opened the door a crack and peered out. There was a pile of boxes on the deck just outside the door.

She glanced around to make sure that no one was looking her way. Then she darted out and jumped behind the boxes.

Made it, she thought.

Hawke took a moment to gather her bearings. She needed to get to a spot that wouldn't be guarded by the marines, and a part of the ship that would get close enough to the Merry so that she could jump over.

She peeked out from behind the boxes. Scanning the deck, she caught sight of the walkway that went around the side of the ship.

"If I remember correctly," she whispered to herself, "Marine ships have a small observations deck at the back under the captain's room."

Suddenly, footsteps came up beside the boxes.

Hawke ducked back and crouched behind them, hoping she hadn't been seen.

"Cowardly pirates," she heard a marine retort, "They always run, and they never fight."

"Well I have a feeling they aren't running away," said another marine, "There are only two men sailing the ship, the rest of the pirates aren't there."

The first marine grunted.

"Sounds to me like they're abandoning their crew," he scoffed, "I wouldn't expect any more from pirates."

The marines' footsteps faded away.

"Only two men?" Hawke wondered, "Why are there only two? Where are the others?"

She peeked out again and, seeing the coast was clear, made a dash for the walkway.

"I just hope there isn't anybody back here," she whispered to herself as she darted into the passage.

Her luck held, the walkway was deserted.

Hawke sped down it and rounded the back of the ship. There was a small platform there, with enough space for a chair and a table. It too was deserted.

"Okay," said Hawke as she sat down in the chair, "Now I just need them to catch up with the Merry."

As she said this, the ship jerked and started to move forward.

Hawke jumped up and went to the other corner of the ship's hull. Looking around it, she could get a good view of the Merry. The Marine ship was closing in fast.

Hawke noticed that the Merry wasn't heading out to sea; it was following the shoreline around the island.

"Where are they going?" she wondered aloud.

Then she looked ahead and saw a large cliff jutting out from the island for quite a ways, forming an odd point.

There? She thought, why would they be going there?

The marines were gaining on the Merry and soon Hawke could make out the two figures running around the deck.

"It's Zoro and Usopp!" she cried, waving.

But they were still too far apart for anything to be heard.

Hawke waited impatiently for the marines to close in. The ship wedged itself between the Merry and the island.

"I guess they're trying to cut off an escape route," Hawke muttered.

The Merry and the marine ship were right under point now.

"Zoro! Usopp!" Hawke called again.

This time they heard her.

Zoro gave the helm to Usopp and ran over to the rail.

"Hawke!" he yelled, "What are you doing over there?"

"I got captured," returned Hawke, climbing onto the edge of the walkway, "Hang on, I'll jump over."

"Hurry up!" shouted Zoro.

Hawke readied herself to jump. She extended her wings just a little underneath her jacket. This will give me more lift, she thought.

"Watch out!" she heard Usopp's voice suddenly.

She saw Zoro look above her and saw his eyes widen.

"Hawke!" he shouted.

As she turned to look above her, there was a huge crash and the marine ship gave a violent lurch. Hawke lost her balance and fell off the railing into the sea.

She came up spluttering and spitting out water.

"What was that?" she gasped.

There was a sudden great splash from the other side of the Merry. Hawke was washed backwards, away from the ships.

"No," she gasped again and started swimming back towards the Merry.

Just then, she caught sight of something in the water behind the Merry.

"Is that what made the splash?" she wondered.

Hawke swam to the side a bit to get a better view.

There was a large raft floating beside the Merry. Hawke craned her neck to see what was on the raft.

"What?!" she exclaimed in disbelief.

Ryu was on the raft!

The great Millennium Dragon was still quietly on the raft with Apis on his shoulder. Hawke could also see Luffy, Nami and Sanji standing beside Ryu.

"They're safe," she sighed in relief, "And it looks like they know about Apis and Ryu."

But what are they doing here? She thought.

Then it clicked.

Ryu must have asked them the same thing he had told her: to take him to the Dragon's Nest.

Because if he had, there's no way Luffy would turn him down.

"Luffy!" she called over the waves.

"There you are Hawke!" yelled Luffy when he caught sight of her in the water, "Where have you been? Hurry!"

"I'm coming," panted Hawke as she extended her wings under her jacket and sped through the water.

Hawke was approaching the raft when a sudden explosion erupted in the water behind her.

"They're firing at us!" exclaimed Nami as she climbed back onto the ship, "We have to get out of here now!"

"Hurry Hawke," shouted Luffy.

"I'll save you Hawke-san!" Sanji cooed over the railing, reaching down towards the water.

Hawke saw Usopp lowering the ladder. She swam over and grabbed onto the bottom rung.

She was climbing, when all of a sudden, Ryu let out an immense roar.

"No Hawke-child! You must stay here!" he cried.

"What?!" exclaimed Hawke, still clinging to the ladder, "Why can't I come?"

"You can hear the dragon too?" Nami asked Hawke, leaning over the side.

"Yeah," said Hawke distractedly.

She was still focusing on Ryu.

"You must not go to the Dragon's Nest," said Ryu, quieting down a bit, "You must stay here and wait for your friends to return."

"There's no way I'm staying here alone," said Hawke, a little ticked off at the dragon.

"Hawke," Luffy interjected suddenly, "I think you should stay here."

"What?" snapped Zoro.

"Luffy?" Hawke gave him a pleading look.

But Luffy shook his head.

"We'll come right back," he grinned, "Promise."

Hawke felt extremely conflicted. But she began lowering herself back into the water.

"You guys better hurry," she said, giving them a smile, "I'll be waiting for you at this point."

She raised her hand to the cliff towering over them.

As the Merry sped too safety, Hawke submerged herself and watched the marine ship pass over her.

I wonder if they know I've escaped yet, she thought.

As the ships cleared the area above her head, Hawke resurfaced and slowly started swimming back towards Gunkka Island.

"Why couldn't I go with them?" she pouted, "They'll probably have a big adventure without me."

She reached the shore and clambered out of the water and onto the beach.

Hawke stood watching the Merry vanish from the horizon, followed by the navy ships.

"Just hurry back, okay," she told the empty air.

Suddenly there was a voice from behind her.

"What are you doing here, Miss Hawke?"

She whirled around.

There was Meeko, his clothing drenched, and supporting Gavin on his shoulder.

"Um, I could ask you the same thing," stuttered Hawke, "Shouldn't you be on the ship?"

Meeko stared at her.

"I could say the same to you," he said.

"Fair enough," said Hawke with a small smile, "You fell off the ship too then, when the raft hit it?"

Meeko nodded.

Gavin groaned.

"Is he okay?" Hawke asked, approaching the marines.

"Stay back, pirate," snapped Gavin.

"I'm not going to hurt you or anything," said Hawke as she came up beside him.

"Come on Gavin, we don't know that she's a pirate," said Meeko, "Those pirates just left her."

Gavin glared at her.

"Well are you?" he taunted, "Did you just get abandoned by your crew and so you're sniveling up to the marines so you won't get punished?"

Hawke glared at him.

Still, she thought, it might be best if I didn't admit I'm part of their crew to these guys.

"I was sailing with them to get to the Grand Line," she said, "They helped me out and they're my friends."

She left it at that and hoped it was enough.

Meeko gave Gavin an encouraging glance. Gavin just scowled.

"It looks like something happened to your leg," commented Hawke, looking at Gavin's bloody pant leg.

"It's nothing," the marine grunted, but he looked pale, "I just need to sit down."

"Well don't sit here," cautioned Hawke as Meeko moved to lower his friend onto the beach, "The sand will get into it and cause an infection."

She pointed to a grassy space just up the beach.

"Let him sit there," she said.

Meeko led Gavin over to the grass and let him drop onto the ground.

"Let's have a look," Meeko said as he raised the bloodied pant leg.

Hawke looked over his shoulder.

Something had hit Gavin's leg, slicing a cut across the front of his calf.

"It doesn't look so bad," said Hawke, "Nothing's broken, it's just a cut."

Gavin glared at her, but his face regained some of its colour and he seemed to calm down a bit.

"Here," said Hawke, reaching into her jacket and taking out a roll of bandages, "These will be good enough."

"Thanks," said Meeko and he began fixing up his friends leg.

"Well, I hope you guys get back to your ship eventually," said Hawke, starting to walk away.

"Hey, wait a minute," said Gavin, holding up his hand.

Hawke stopped.

"You're still a marine prisoner," Gavin continued, "You have to stay here until the commander comes back and arrests you."

Hawke looked down at him. Then she gave an exasperated sigh.

"I won't go far," she pointed to the jutting cliff, "If you want to arrest me, I'll be up there."

And with that she walked away up the shoreline.

Hawke made her way up onto the top of the cliff, then walked along it all the way to its point.

She stood watching the sea for a long while, then finally sat down, cross-legged, and waited.

Her eyes never left the horizon.

The sun made its way to the highest point in the sky, then slowly started to descend.

Hawke heard approaching footsteps from behind her.

"What are you doing up here?" Meeko asked.

Hawke sighed and looked back at him.

"I'm waiting for my friends to come back for me," she said, then returned her gaze to the horizon.

"And you really think that pirates are going to come back for you?"

She could hear the doubt in his question.

"Not all pirates are like you think they are," she said quietly, "These pirates will turn down a mountain of treasure if it means getting their friends back faster."

She heard Meeko give a little huff.

"It doesn't matter if you don't believe me," she said, "They'll come back. And I'm waiting here until they do."

There was silence for a few moments.

"You really think they'll come back, just for you?" Meeko asked again.

Hawke's hand came up and found the chains around her neck.

"Yes."

Another silence.

"Well, if the commander gets back before they do, you'll have to come with us," said Meeko decisively.

"That won't happen," cried Hawke, jumping up and pointing at the horizon.

The silhouette of the Going Merry could be seen approaching the island.

"That was quick," muttered Meeko, "But the commander isn't that far behind!"

The marine ships had just come into view over the horizon, still in hot pursuit of the Strawhats.

They can still make it here ahead of the marines, thought Hawke as she analyziede the distance between the Merry and her pursuers.

"Wait," said Meeko suddenly, "Why is the Commodore here?"

Hawke looked towards the sea in front of the Merry.

There were dozens upon dozens of navy war ships advancing on her crew!

"Oh no!" she whispered, "Be careful Luffy."

There was nothing they could do but watch as the Merry got caught in a circle of marine ships.

Hawke looked on in despair as they began to open fire on her friends.

"I have to get out there!" she cried and started towards the edge of the cliff.

"Are you insane?!" exclaimed Meeko as he grabbed her arm, "You'll die if you jump from this height."

"No I won't," snapped Hawke.

But she did stop.

I don't think I should reveal my wings to the marines, she thought.

"But then what should I do?" she whispered frantically, watching the battle enfolding in front of her.

"Don't do anything," said Meeko, still keeping his grip on her arm, "The Strawhats will be captured and then you can prove you don't have any connections with them and—"

Meeko was interrupted by an extremely loud roar, echoeing out across the sea.

"What was that?" shouted the marine.

"Ryu?" gasped Hawke, "Aren't you supposed to be at the Dragon's Nest? Why are you still here?"

"The time has come!" roared the dragon again.

Hawke squinted towards the Merry, trying to see him amidst all the ships.

"What time has come?" she asked.

"What are you talking about?" said Meeko.

But Hawke hushed him with a wave of her hand.

There he was! Her eyes finally found Ryu. He had somehow fallen off the raft and was now floating on the water. No wait… he was sinking!

Just then a flash of red caught her eye. It was Luffy! He was on Ryu's back.

"Save him Luffy!" cried Hawke, "He's sinking!"

"What are you—" Meeko was interrupted again.

But this time, it was by the island.

The whole mountain suddenly jerked and started shaking.

Hawke fell to the ground.

"What's going on?!" she cried, covering her head as rocks began to fall down the mountain.

The shaking continued and Hawke crawled closer to the tip of the cliff.

Looking down, she realized what was going on.

"The island is rising," she gasped.

Meeko crawled up beside her and his jaw dropped.

Under the ocean spread out before them, murky shadows began to emerge. The shadows quickly became clear and revealed the ocean floor was rising to the surface.

Large rocks began bursting through the surface of the water, impaling marine ships and causing huge waves.

As the shaking finally died down, Hawke stood up and took in the scene that now lay stretched out before her.

The large expanse of rocky pools was dotted with large, strange looking rocks that overshadowed the water. There were coral reefs forming ridges and adding colour and seaweed beds covering the edges of the pools.

Hawke was jerked out of her amazement by Ryu…

No wait, she thought, that doesn't sound like Ryu.

Hawke turned her face skywards and gasped in astonishment.

The sky was full of Millennium Dragons! They were circling lower and lower, crying out and calling all the way down.

As Hawke watched, they landed on the rocky ocean bottom and began flitting about, feeding and preening each other's feathers.

"This is amazing," she sighed as she took in the view.

Just then, she caught sight of Luffy and the others. They had gotten off the Merry and were walking among the dragons.

Hawke immediately turned and sped down the cliff, completely ignoring Meeko's protests. She ran down the beach and out onto the rocky flats. As she began picking her way through the flock of dragons, she heard an agonizing wail.

"That sounded like Apis," she muttered worriedly and quickly changed her course and ran in the direction of the sound.

Hawke rounded one of the oddly shaped pillar rocks and found her crew standing facing away from her.

"Guys," she sighed happily and ran over to them.

"There you are," smiled Nami.

Zoro turned and gave her a satisfied smirk.

"You've finally returned to us Hawke-chwan!" swooned Sanji.

"I'm glad you're okay… Luffy," Hawke's voice faded away as she noticed what Luffy and the others had been looking at.

There was a larger pool in front of them. Apis was at the edge of it pacing and crying. And in the middle of it was Ryu, lying still and motionless.

"Oh no," gasped Hawke, her hand coming up and covering her mouth, "Please don't tell me…"

"He's dead," said Luffy, surprisingly blunt.

"No he's not!" screamed Apis, "Ryu, say something!"

"Apis…" said Nami sadly.

Hawke felt tears filling her eyes.

"He's dead Apis," said Luffy, "But he's happy. He wanted to get the Dragon's Nest, and he made it there."

"But he said he would get better if he went to the Dragon's Nest," wailed Apis, "You liar, Ryu!"

"He wasn't lying," said Luffy quietly, "Dragons come to here to die and then be reborn."

He pointed across the pool. There were two other Millennium Dragons fussing over a small rock. The rock cracked and suddenly a baby dragon emerged and began peeping.

"Apis!" it peeped, "Apis! Apis! Apis!"

Apis stood frozen, staring at the baby dragon. Then she tilted her head back and wailed. She sobbed and sobbed, crying her heart out.

Luffy smiled.

Then he turned to Hawke, who was still staring at the baby dragon, tears falling down her face.

"He didn't want you to come here because he didn't want you to see him die," Luffy said into her ear, "He said that you look just like your mom and he wouldn't be able to handle seeing you sad."

Hawke stared at Luffy.

"How could you understand him?" she asked through the tears blurring her vision.

Luffy shrugged.

"I just could," he said, then he paused and whispered into her ear, "He said he was your father."

Hawke shook her head. She didn't know what any of that meant, but she knew that she was extremely sad about Ryu dying. She sank to her knees and sobbed silently into her hands.

"Woah," said Usopp, "There's no need to get so emotional."

"Let her cry Usopp," said Luffy, patting Hawke on the back.

The crew enjoyed a happy moment, watching the dragons and seeing more hatching baby dragons.

Hawke finally got a hold of herself and went to console Apis.

"I want to learn more about dragons," Apis sniffled.

"I think that's a wonderful idea," smiled Hawke.

She took Apis by the hand and they started to make their way back to the main island.

"Just where do you think you're going?" said a menacing voice from behind them.

The crew turned and was confronted with Erik. He was standing on a higher piece of coral and was jeering down at them.

"Now that I have all the dragon bones I could ever want, I can't have you pesky youngsters spreading the word about this," he sneered at them.

"It's the Okama man!" shouted Luffy.

"It's Ogama," said the man through clenched teeth, "Now feel the despair as I kill these dragons and become immortal as you lie dying."

"I won't let you do that," said Luffy, his eyes hidden under the brim of his hat, "Everyone, get back!"

The crew retreated and watched as Luffy fought with Erik.

Erik bombarded Luffy with slice attacks that cut through his rubber body. Luffy threw punches at him but Erik was too quick and he dodged them all.

"Luffy," whispered Hawke worriedly.

"He'll be fine," muttered Zoro.

They watched as Luffy launched into his final attack and managed to plant blow after blow on Erik, sending the man sailing through the air.

"Hurray Luffy!" cried Apis.

Hawke breathed a sigh of relief.

The Going Merry was once again ready to set sail. The crew gathered around the ladder and said goodbye to the villagers of Gunkka Island.

"You sure you don't want to come with us Apis?" Luffy was asking.

"No," said the little girl, "I think I should stay here. I want to learn all I can about the Millennium Dragons and teach it to everyone on the island."

"Alright, then," laughed Luffy, "Take care everyone."

The crew climbed aboard and set sail, waving goodbye until they couldn't see the villagers any more.

"Well that was quite the adventure," said Nami, returning to her charts.

"Yeah," said Hawke, "It's funny how everything worked out in the end."

"Oh, Hawke-san," said Sanji, coming over to her, "One of the villagers asked me to give you this."

He held out a half-roll of bandages.

"She said that a young man asked her to return this to the girl with the brown hair and leather jacket," continued Sanji.

Hawke took them and smiled.

"I'd forgotten about them," she mumbled, "I wonder if they got off the island okay."

"Who's that?" asked Zoro.

"Some marines I met," said Hawke.

"Oh yeah," said Nami, "Usopp said you got captured by the marines. How did you escape?"

"That doesn't matter," shouted Luffy, bursting into the conversation, "Nami, let's go to the Grand Line!"

The captain's excitement was contagious, and soon everyone had forgotten about the events of the day and was looking towards the next.

But Hawke couldn't help dwelling on the events that had occurred on Gunkka Island. This was the first time she had heard anything referring to her mother. It had awoken an urge inside of her. She wanted desperately to find out about her parents, and about who she was. She knew that, despite being senile, there had been some truth in Ryu's words to her. Hawke needed to find out what he meant.

Luffy had told her about the crew's pledge on the barrel as they set out from Loguetown towards the Grand Line.

Later that night, once everyone had gone to bed, Hawke crept up on deck and went over to the barrel. It was still standing in its place by the masthead. She looked at the barrel, then out to sea. Taking a deep breath, she raised her foot and slammed it onto the top of the barrel.

"To find out who I am," she said to the waves.

Then, lowering her foot, she returned to the crow's nest to keep the watch.

Her mind was full of thoughts of Ryu's words. She still didn't understand why she had been so sad that he had died. As she thought about this, tears came to her eyes once more and she cried softly into her sleeves.

Since her face was buried in her arms, she didn't notice when a green hair shadow slipped silently back into the boys' bedroom.


	13. Chapter 13: The Red Line

**Chapter 13**

**The Red Line**

The next day dawned cloudy and windy.

Hawke was still up in the crows' nest, watching the churning sea.

"There are some big waves out there," she called down to Nami, "And there's a reef off to the right."

"Thanks," returned Nami, "Sanji, turn us left."

"Of course Nami-dear," came the reply from within the ship.

"Okay we're clear now," called Hawke after they had passed the reef, "We should be good for a while."

She flew down to the deck.

"It's so cool how you can do that," sighed Nami, watching Hawke land.

Hawke smiled.

"Yes, it's the silver lining I guess," she replied.

"How does it work with your jacket on?" asked Nami.

"Oh, like this," said Hawke, taking off her jacket and holding it up, "There are two slits under the folds here. That's where my wings come out."

She poked her hands through the holes and wriggled her fingers.

"Ah, that's clever," said Nami.

Zoro came out of the kitchen onto the deck.

"Hey, Hawke," he called, "Something's been bothering me."

"What is it Zoro?" asked the scout.

"Where do you keep your sword and knives?" he asked.

"Oh right," Hawke smiled, "I guess it's not a secret anymore."

She unfolded her wings and lifted the right one up, revealing a harness that was attached to her wing. Her sword was strapped onto it, as well as some throwing knives and a small bag.

"They're good for storing things too," Hawke laughed.

"Huh," Zoro raised an eyebrow, "And that isn't uncomfortable when your wings are… in tattoo form?"

"Nope," said Hawke, "I can feel their weight, but they fit in there nicely."

"That's good to know," said Zoro, "If we ever need to sneak something in somewhere, we can use your wings."

"I wouldn't mind that," said Hawke, smiling, "I'd love to be of use to you guys."

Sanji came out of the kitchen.

"Here's your lunch Hawke-san," he cooed, handing her a small box, "I wrapped it especially for you so you could take it up to the crows' nest."

"Thank you Sanji," said Hawke, taking the box, "I should get back up there."

"Oh, so soon?" pouted Sanji.

"Yeah," said Nami, "We should be approaching the Red Line soon. We need her up on watch."

"Whatever you say Nami-swan," swooned Sanji, "I have your lunch here too, my love."

"Hey, where's my lunch," snapped Zoro.

"In the kitchen, Moss Head," said Sanji, "Go get it yourself."

"Damn cook," Zoro grunted and headed back into the kitchen.

Hawke carried her lunch up to the crows' nest and sat down to eat.

"Mmm," she sighed, "Sanji's food is always so delicious."

Hawke turned her eyes to the horizon.

She squinted.

"Well that looks weird," she muttered.

"Nami," she called down, "How far are we from the Red Line?"

"About 15 miles, I think," called Nami.

"Well I see a huge dark line on the horizon," said Hawke.

"That would be it," called Nami, "It's a huge wall of red mountains. They reach up past the clouds. There's only one entrance and it's really small."

"I'll keep an eye out," returned Hawke, and turned her eyes seaward again.

A couple hours passed before Hawke could see any detail of the Red Line. It was enormous. Hawke couldn't believe that such huge mountains existed in the world. They must reach up to heaven, she thought.

"I'm going to fly over and check it out," called down Hawke.

"Okay, be careful," shouted Nami.

"Wait! Take me too!" called Luffy.

He stretched his arm up and grabbed the edge crows' nest, catapulting himself up.

"Strap on," laughed Hawke when Luffy reached her.

He wrapped himself around her like before and they took off.

"Try not to move around too much this time okay, Luffy," cautioned Hawke as she fought the wind, "It's hard to stay steady."

"Woah, it's so huge!" Luffy gaped, staring at the Red Line.

Hawke beat her wings and the distance between them and the mountains quickly diminished. Soon they were right up to the rocks.

"Take us closer," urged Luffy.

"I'll try," said Hawke and she dove down to the surface of the water.

They rode a gust of wind up and skimmed the rocky surface up the mountain, dodging in and out between the jutting rocks.

"Woohoo!" shouted Luffy, as they soared back out over the sea, "Oh, what's that?" he said, pointing down at the wall.

Hawke flew lower. There was a gate visible. It was only a small opening in the huge wall of rock.

"That must be where we have to sail through," said Hawke, "Wait… what?"

She squinted at the gate.

"Alright, let's go join the others and sail over the Red Line!" shouted Luffy, interrupting her thoughts.

"Aye aye, Captain," Hawke laughed.

She adjusted her course and headed back to the Merry.

"Good," she noted, "The ship seems to be right in line with the gate."

They flew in silence for a moment.

"Do you believe him?" asked Luffy suddenly.

Hawke frowned.

"No," she said, "I can't believe that a thousand year old Millennium Dragon is my father, Luffy. That's impossible."

"You never know," said Luffy, bending his neck around so he could look at her.

Hawke kept frowning.

"But maybe he did know who my mother was…" she trailed off.

"You want to find out who your parents are?" asked Luffy.

"Yeah," said Hawke, looking down at him, "Don't you Luffy?"

The captain shook his head.

"I don't really mind," he said.

"Well you could always ask your grampa if you ever wanted to," said Hawke, "I don't have that option."

Luffy was silent for a moment.

"Maybe your parents are really cool, like Ace's," he laughed.

"What do you mean?" asked Hawke.

"Ace's dad was the Pirate King!" exclaimed Luffy, "Isn't that so cool!"

"Wait," stuttered Hawke, "You mean that our older brother's father was Gol D. Roger?!"

Luffy unwrapped his arms and flailed them in excitement.

"Ace doesn't like it," he said, "So I'm not supposed to tell anyone. But it's so cool!"

"Wow," sighed Hawke in amazement, "I really want to meet Ace."

"He's so awesome," sighed Luffy, dangling his body down towards the water.

"Luffy!" exclaimed Hawke, trying to hang onto him, "Get back up here and behave."

They landed back on the deck and Luffy untangled himself and ran to the sheep's head to sit in his spot.

Hawke went over to Nami.

"We saw the opening," she confirmed, "And it looks like we're heading straight for it."

"Excellent," said Nami, squinting towards the Red Line, "We're getting closer."

"There was one more thing," said Hawke, hesitating, "I'm not sure if I saw this right, but it looked like the water was flowing up the mountain."

Nami nodded.

"That's what I've been told about the gate. It's called Reverse Mountain, the water flows up the mountain instead of down it."

Hawke stared at the looming red wall.

"It's all so majestic," she said in wonder.

"Well you won't think that when we get smashed to pieces on the rocks," warned Nami, "This is a really dangerous crossing."

"Let's go!" came Luffy's voice from the front.

Nami sighed.

"Why does he never worry?" she said and turned her attention back to her charts.

Hawke flew back up to the crows' nest and stood facing the approaching wall.

"Still on course," she called down, "Watch for a rip current on the left."

"Sanji, move us to the left!" shouted Nami, "We want to get onto that current."

The current grabbed the Merry and the ship started to pick up speed.

"There's a rock straight ahead," called Hawke.

"Move us right, Sanji," shouted Nami.

"Yes Nami-swan!" Sanji's voice came up from the ship.

"Almost there," whispered Hawke.

The gate was right in front of them.

Usopp and Zoro moved to the rail and looked up.

"It's massive," gasped Usopp.

"How is that water flowing upwards?!" muttered Zoro.

"Woohoo!" shouted Luffy from the masthead.

The Merry seemed to sit at the bottom of the gate for a moment. Then, suddenly, the sea gripped her and the ship shot into the opening.

"We're too far to the left!" Nami suddenly yelled out, "Luffy, we're going to be smashed against the gate!"

"Got it!" shouted Luffy.

He jumped into the air, blew himself up like a balloon.

Hawke watched as her captain fell down in between the gate and the Merry. As the ship hit, Luffy got squished, but his rubber body managed to bounce the Merry into the center of the stream.

As Luffy deflated himself, he flew back onto the deck.

"Luffy, your hat!" cried Hawke, pointing to the straw hat floating away on the wind.

"Hat!" shouted Luffy, stretching his arm out and grabbing it, "That was close, thanks Hawke."

Hawke smiled and let her excitement take over.

"We are sailing _up_ a mountain!" she shouted and flew down to the deck.

While she was descending, a sudden gust of wind hit her and she was knocked off course. With a cry, she fell towards the edge of the ship.

"Hawke!" shouted Zoro and he grabbed onto her hand as she flew by.

The Merry hit a small wave and the bump made Zoro lose his balance. He fell onto the deck, pulling Hawke down with him. She landed on top of him.

"I'm so sorry," Hawke apologized as she moved to get off Zoro's chest, "I should have been more careful since we're in a dangerous place."

"It's fine," grunted the swordsman, then he stopped.

"This is how we met, you know," he said as Hawke stood up.

She blinked, then she smiled.

"I remember," she said, "When you saved me in Loguetown."

"Yeah," said Zoro, "Why were you in the air anyway?"

"I was flying around looking for Luffy," Hawke explained, "I was really high so no one would see me. But then there was a huge gust of green wind and it blew me off course. I tried to fight it but it was to strong and I was really tired, so I hid my wings and fell."

"Well it's a good thing I caught you," grunted Zoro, moving to the front of the ship.

"Yeah," replied Hawke.

She made to follow him when she suddenly felt a hand on her arm.

"Well, well, well, isn't this a special treasure," said a voice.

There was a sudden cry.

The crew, whose attention had been on the water channel, whirled around.

Erik had appeared out of nowhere. He had Hawke in a choke hold and was pointing a knife at her head.

"I come to get my revenge and your head, Strawhat, and look what I find," he stroked Hawke's still outstretched wings, "A priceless treasure that rich men will pay billions of berries for. If I had known you were this special when we captured you, I would have put you under the strictest supervision."

Hawke whimpered and struggled, trying to get out of the man's grasp.

"It's the Okama man again!" said Luffy, who had come down onto the deck, "Let go of my little sister!" he clenched his fists.

"It's Ogama! And I was going to settle for collecting the bounty on your head, but it seems I have had a stroke of luck," Erik cackled, "I will be all set once I have this girl," he tightened his grip around Hawkes neck.

"Get your hands off of her," seethed Zoro, unsheathing his swords.

"Stay back or the girl dies," said Erik, adjusting his knife.

Zoro froze.

"That's it," said the man, "Now I just need to use my scythe powers to get off this ship."

Hawke's face had turned a shade of blue.

"Watch out," shouted Nami, "You'll strangle her!"

"Shut up, little girl," snarled Erik, clenching Hawke tighter.

"Hey weirdo!" shouted Usopp, "Let go of our crew mate!"

He shot at Erik with his slingshot. A cloud of smoke appeared and hid Erik and Hawke from view.

There was a muffled choking noise.

Luffy, Zoro and Sanji ran into the smoke, and then out the other side.

"What?" stammered Luffy, "Where'd Hawke go?"

"Over here, Luffy," they heard a weak little gasp.

Hawke was over by the mast, clinging to it for support. She still looked quite shaken.

"How'd you get over there, Hawke-san?" asked Sanji.

Hawke made a jabbing motion with her elbow.

"A swift one to the stomach," she gasped with a faint smile.

The men looked relieved.

"Good one, Hawke," shouted Nami and Usopp.

The smoke cleared and revealed that Erik had retreated and was standing on the rail of the ship.

"You think one silly hit will stop me?!" he taunted through clenched teeth.

Nami saw her chance.

"Look a Millennium Dragon!" she shouted.

"What? Where?" said Erik, looking frantically in the direction Nami was pointing.

Nami ran over and kicked out one of his feet. The man toppled over the edge and fell into the water.

"Well we don't have to worry about him anymore," said Nami, "I know for a fact that devil fruit users can't swim."

The crew breathed a sigh of relief.

"Hawke," said Luffy, coming over to her, followed by Zoro and Sanji.

Hawke slowly let go of the mast.

"I'm okay," she gasped weakly, rubbing her throat.

She went over to the edge of the ship and held onto the rail.

Sanji went to stand beside Nami. Zoro stayed by the mast.

The crew returned their attention to where they were headed.

"We must be above the clouds now," said Sanji, looking at the mist swirling below them.

"We're so high up," said Luffy, bouncing around in excitement.

He had returned to his place on the Merry's head after making sure Hawke was okay.

Nami glanced forward.

"We're approaching the top of the mountain," she called, "We're going over!"

The crew watched as the top of the mountain came into view. Three different upstreams colliding into a huge upside down waterfall greeted their eyes.

"How are we going to make it through that!" exclaimed Usopp in terror.

"Just watch us!" shouted Nami.

The ship was sent flying into the waterfall. Everyone was screaming and hanging onto the ship for dear life.

Hawke felt her grip slipping.

I still haven't got my strength back, she thought frantically, her fingers trying to find a hold in the wood.

Just then she felt an arm wrap securely around her waist, keeping her steady. She couldn't see who it was through the spray.

It's probably Sanji, she thought, I'll have to thank him later.

Then another current caught the ship and the Merry was on her way downwards.

"Woohoo!" shouted Luffy as the Merry and her crew passed into the first great sea: The Grand Line.


	14. Chapter 14: Flash Forward

**Chapter 14**

**Flash Forward**

Many weeks passed and Hawke found herself a trusted member of the crew. She had shown that she could hold her own in combat and she helped out around the ship in any way she could.

She used her link with birds to find out what the weather patterns were or if there were any small islands or threatening ships in their vicinity. She also enjoyed cleaning, which was greatly appreciated by Nami and Sanji.

Nami enjoyed Hawke's ability to store items on her wings to hide them. There were many times when she would make Hawke hide treasure and money when they were visiting a city so no one would steal it.

Nami and Hawke became very close friends. Since they were the only girls on the crew, they formed a strong bond.

Hawke often slept in Nami's room, much to Sanji's delight, when it was too cold to stay in the crow's nest. There was more than one time when they had caught him trying to peek in under the door at them. Once, Nami had opened the door and dumped a bucket of water on his head. That didn't deter him much though and Nami suggested that they fix up another room in the ship to be her own room.

The Strawhat pirates had had quite a few adventures in the short time since they had crossed over Reverse Mountain.

They had helped out a whale named Laboon, who had been ramming his head into the Red Line, trying to break it. After learning Laboon's story, Luffy had fought the whale and made the fight end in a draw. Luffy had then promised to return for a rematch and had painted the strawhat symbol on Laboon's head to keep him from hurting himself.

While this was going on, the crew had also captured two strange people called Mister 9 and Miss Wednesday. They had been trying to kill Laboon for food.

While they were with Laboon, the lighthouse keeper, who was friends with Laboon, had given them a logpose. The logpose was an instrument which would allow them to navigate the Grand Line.

To the crew's dismay, Luffy proceeded to break the logpose. But then Mister 9 and Miss Wednesday had given them theirs, since they wanted to reach the next island safely.

Unfortunately, the island that their logpose directed the crew too was a trap.

They had been lured in and then attacked by Baroque Works, a company that had a huge network of spies that were controlled by one man named Mister 0. They influenced events all over the world and were responsible for trying to cause a war in the kingdom of Alabasta.

While they were trying to escape the Baroques Works employees, Miss Wednesday had given them a surprise. She had ended up being an undercover agent, trying to uncover the identity of Mister 0. Which she had: he was a man named Sir Crocodile.

It turned out she was the princess of Alabasta Kingdom and her real name was Nefeltari Vivi. Luffy had decided to help her return to her country in order to stop the civil war.

On their way to Alabasta Kingdom, they had landed on an island inhabited by ancient dinosaurs and two giants. The giants were locked in a never ending dual to see who had caught the larger sea king fifty years ago.

The crew had run into more Baroques Works employees there: Mister 3 and his partner, Miss Goldenweek. They had been sabotaging the giants dual to make it end and to collect the bounties on their heads.

Mister 3 had wax-wax devil fruit powers and had trapped Nami, Zoro and Vivi. And Luffy had been a victim of Miss Goldenweek's powers of colour that influences a person's mood.

Hawke and Sanji hadn't been directly involved in that battle. They had found a small white house and had been investigating it when a snail phone had gone off. Sanji had answered and had a conversation with Mister 0. This had made Hawke nervous, but Sanji had called himself Mister Prince, so she thought it might be safe since his real identity wasn't revealed.

After that, two creatures had come to the white house. One was a vulture and the other looked like a cat. They had attacked Hawke and Sanji, but the crew mates had easily defeated them and then went to find Luffy and the rest of the crew.

When they finally found everyone, Mister 3 and Miss Goldenweek had already been defeated. So the crew said goodbye to the giants and left the island.

They were then eaten by a giant goldfish. But the giants shot the goldfish through its head, making a path for the Going Merry to sail through the fish to the sea.

Once they were at sea again, Nami had fallen terribly ill. The crew was in a panic and Hawke and Vivi worked tirelessly to try and bring down Nami's fever.

They had anchored at a winter island and begged the inhabitants to bring a doctor to help Nami. The people on the island had denied them and shot at Luffy. But Vivi had refused to use violence and kept begging. Eventually, they had been allowed onto the island.

Hawke had stayed behind on the Merry with Zoro and Vivi's duck, Carue.

Zoro had been showing her some more one-sword techniques and left her practicing while he went swimming in the icy water for his own training. Hawke had been watching him and when she saw him start to swim away from the ship, she had gotten out and followed him on land, bringing his clothes and a towel with her. She had been feeling a bit put out because Zoro seemed to be being very terse to her, not as friendly as he had been before. But she thought it was probably just the cold.

They had found their way to a village that was in the middle of a fight against some soldiers. Hawke and Zoro joined in on the side of the villagers and Hawke had done some impressive knife throwing. She'd even saved Zoro's back a couple times. After the fight, they had helped dig out people who had been buried in an avalanche that had come down from the mountain.

A man with a huge mouth had arrived with more soldiers and gone up the mountain to a castle. Zoro thought they should follow him up, but they had to wait for the lift to return to the bottom of the mountain to take them.

When they finally got up to the top, they found Luffy, Usopp and Sanji had defeated the man with the big mouth. Nami was being treated by a lady doctor who lived in the castle and Luffy had invited the doctors' assistant to join the crew and become the Merry's doctor.

After a little persuasion, the assistant finally accepted and suddenly Hawke wasn't the newest crew member any more.

The new doctor was an interesting creature.

He was a small, blue-nosed reindeer who had eaten a human-human devil fruit and so had human characteristics.

His name was Tony Tony Chopper.


	15. Chapter 15: Doctor's Orders

**Chapter 15**

**Doctor's Orders**

Hawke had lots of fun with Chopper once they'd set sail again.

He seemed to gravitate towards her from the beginning, and he followed the scout everywhere.

She let him help her do the washing and sweep and mop the deck and she gave him rides sometimes, holding him while she flew. And she watched him when he was preparing medicines and treatments.

They were presently in one of the inner rooms of the ship.

Chopper was preparing some sort of medicine and Hawke was sweeping the floor.

"I would love to know more about healing," she told him as she watched him grind up some herbs, "You really know your stuff."

"Aww, don't think that it makes me happy when you say stuff like that," blushed Chopper as he did a little dance.

Hawke laughed and tickled his tummy.

"You are so cute!" she exclaimed.

Just then they heard footsteps outside.

"Hey, Hawke," Zoro stuck his head in the door, "Can you come help me with something?"

"Sure Zoro," smiled Hawke, "I'll be right there."

She put her broom down and went to the door.

"Do you need any help?" asked Chopper, running up behind her.

"I think I'll be alright for now, Chopper," she said and patted him on the head, "You should finish up that medicine you were making. You'll have to teach me what it does later."

Choppers eyes lit up.

"Okay," he said and sat back down at his table.

Hawke emerged out on deck.

"Where's Zoro?" she asked Usopp, who was sitting on the railing.

"I think I saw him go downstairs," said Usopp pointing to a door.

"I wonder what he needs me to help him with down there," muttered Hawke.

She descended into the boys' bedroom and peered through the hanging hammocks.

"Zoro?" she called.

"Over here," she heard him reply.

Making her way through the hammocks, she caught sight of the swordsman in one corner.

"What did you need help with?" she asked, reaching him.

Zoro was bent over a small jumble of objects on the ground.

Hawke came up behind him.

"What's that?" she asked.

Zoro was holding something in his hands.

"This is my private stuff," he said, shuffling the objects around so they were concealed behind his low hanging hammock.

"Oh," said Hawke, surprised.

Zoro held out the object in his hands.

Hawke took it and held it up.

It was a picture frame. Hawke squinted, trying to make out the picture, but the glass of the frame was covered in a black stain and she couldn't see any details.

"You're good at cleaning stuff," muttered Zoro to the floor, "I was wondering if you could get that black stuff off."

Hawke looked down at the picture frame again. The stain didn't look like it would be too hard to get out, but it was old.

"I'll try my best," she said, putting the frame in her pocket.

"And don't let anyone see it," he snapped, then he checked himself, "Uh… please," he finished.

Hawke smiled and blushed.

"Of course I'll keep your private things private," she said.

Zoro looked relieved.

"Thanks," he said, giving her a little smirk.

Zoro led the way back up to the deck.

"Chopper's taken a liking to you, I see," he said as they came out onto the deck and Chopper immediately emerged from inside the ship and ran over to cling to Hawke's leg.

Hawke laughed.

"Yes, he's just the cutest thing," she said, patting the reindeers head.

"Hmph," grunted Zoro.

"And I want him to teach me more about healing," Hawke continued, taking Chopper's hoof.

"Yeah," said Chopper, "I'm going to make Hawke my assistant!"

Zoro lifted an eyebrow.

"Don't you go stealing my student now," he said, leaning over Chopper.

Chopper let out a squeak and hid behind Hawke.

Hawke laughed and Zoro looked back to her.

"Don't worry Zoro, you're still my teacher. Learning about healing will be my side project."

Zoro crossed his arms, looking satisfied with her answer.

"So you want to become a healer?" he asked.

Hawke looked down.

"I want to be able to take care of the people I care about the most," she said to the deck.

"You're already a capable fighter," said Zoro, "You don't have to do everything, that's why we have a doctor now."

Hawke looked up.

"If I can inflict pain," she said, "Then I should be able to heal it as well."

She turned away from Zoro.

"I'll try my best to clean it," she said over her shoulder as Chopper led her back into the ship.

Zoro watched her go.

"What was that about?" he muttered, "She's not usually that serious."

"Well she was really scared when Nami got sick," said Usopp from behind Zoro.

The swordsman spun around.

"Don't surprise me like that!" he shouted, gripping the hilt of his sword.

"Calm down," muttered Usopp, plugging his ears.

Zoro sighed and sat down.

"What were you saying about when Nami was sick?" he asked.

"Hawke was really stressed out about it," Usopp explained, "I mean, way more than any of us. I don't know if you noticed, but she didn't get _any_ sleep until we reached Chopper's island."

"Huh," grunted Zoro, he had noticed the rings under Hawkes eyes.

"It's only natural that she wants to know how to do basic healing," said Vivi, coming down to the deck.

"Hey Vivi," said Usopp.

"Hawke is very sensitive to the emotions of people around her," continued Vivi, "I haven't known her for as long as you guys have, but I can tell that she cares about others a lot more than she cares about herself."

Zoro looked out at the water.

"Has she even taken a break from working since we came over Reverse Mountain?" he asked Usopp.

"Well she's washed my clothes a few times since then," said Usopp, thinking, "And she's cleaned the Merry from top to bottom. I'm pretty sure she mended the fishing rods and she takes the watch all the time."

"But have you seen her take any time for herself, at all?" asked Zoro as he stood up," I mean, do we even know what she likes to do in her spare time?"

Sanji had come out on deck and heard Zoro's question.

"Who hasn't taken any breaks?" asked the cook.

"We're talking about Hawke," said Usopp.

"Hmm," said Sanji, lighting his cigarette, "Now that I think about it, I've never seen Hawke-san just sitting down and relaxing. I would know because if she had, I would have brought her a lovely drink and snack for her to relax with," he finished with hearts in his eyes.

"Shut up cook!" muttered Zoro, but he had a worried look on his face.

Just then Nami called down from her room.

"Hey, Vivi! Can you help me with this map? I'm having trouble locating the exact position of Alabasta from here."

"Be right there," called Vivi and stood up.

She turned back to the group, "Well, I think Hawke is the kind of girl that needs good friends like you to make sure she doesn't exhaust herself," she counseled as she left.

The three men sat in silence for a few moments.

"I'll go check on Hawke-san," swooned Sanji and started towards the door into the ship.

"Don't you dare," snarled Zoro as he cut off Sanji in front of the door, "I'll do it."

"I'll go fish with Luffy," muttered Usopp as he went over to the masthead.

Zoro and Sanji had a stand-off.

"I said I'd only warn you once, cook," spat Zoro, drawing his swords.

"And when have I ever listened to you, you Marimo!" returned Sanji, lifting his leg, "A lady is in need and I shall protect her!"

Zoro raised his sword and Sanji prepared to attack.

Just then, Hawke's laugh came up from the ship.

The two men paused when they heard her voice. Sanji noticed Zoro tense up and prepared himself to kick, but then he saw that the swordsman's attention was no longer on him. He was looking off to the side, with his head tilted towards the stairs.

Sanji stared at Zoro and slowly lowered his leg.

"I better go make supper," he muttered as he stalked off to the kitchen.

Zoro grunted, sheathed his swords and went down the stairs.

He walked down the hall to an open door, where he could hear Chopper and Hawke talking. He didn't go in though, he stayed just outside the door way and looked around the doorframe into the room.

Hawke and Chopper were sitting at a desk covered with herbs, bowls of powder, and mixing equipment.

Chopper was holding an herb up and showing it to Hawke. She was listening intently to what Chopper was saying.

Zoro searched Hawkes face as she focused on the herb.

She had shadows under her eyes and he could tell that she was having trouble keeping them open.

How many nights has she taken the watch? thought Zoro, remembering Usopps comment.

He glanced at her clothes. Her jacket was covered in dirt stains and he could see some scrapes and bruises on her legs.

Zoro was angry with himself. How could he have not noticed this before? How could he not make sure she was taking care of herself? She was a member of the crew after all.

Zoro cleared his throat and walked into the room.

"Oh, hi Zoro," said Chopper as he put the herb back down on the desk.

Hawke stood up, concealing a yawn.

"Hello Zoro, did you need something else?"

Zoro stood in front of Hawke, and looked her up and down.

Hawke blushed and fidgeted with the cuffs on her jacket.

"Zoro don't embarrass Hawke!" flustered Chopper running around at their feet.

Zoro ignored the reindeer.

"You look terrible," he said, looking Hawke in the eye.

"Don't insult her!" shouted Chopper.

Hawke looked down.

"I feel fine," she said, "I just need some supper."

"No," said Zoro.

Hawke stopped and looked up at him.

"You need rest," Zoro continued, "And you need to get your clothes washed," he added, glancing at her clothes.

He turned to Chopper.

"Why haven't you treated Hawkes cuts!" he snapped, "You're a doctor aren't you?"

Chopper's eyes widened and he looked at Hawkes legs. Tears welled up in his eyes.

"I'm so sorry Hawke," he cried and ran over to hug her leg, "I should have treated you right away!"

"That's right," said Zoro.

"No no," insisted Hawke, "I'm fine, they're just scrapes-"

"No," interrupted Zoro again.

Hawke was silent.

"Chopper, treat Hawkes wounds," Zoro instructed, "Then you can both come up for dinner. Usopp will take the watch tonight, so you have to get a good night's sleep."

Chopper nodded and started to prepare some bandages.

Zoro stared at Hawke. She stayed standing and didn't seem to want to move to sit down.

"You need to take care of yourself," he told her.

Hawke's shoulders drooped.

"You can't take care of everyone," continued Zoro, "Our crew is strong; we can all take care of ourselves. You don't have to exhaust yourself trying to take care of everyone else and ignoring your own needs. How can we depend on you if you do that?"

Hawke met Zoro's gaze. She was crying softly.

"I just want to make sure that everyone I care about is safe," she sniffled, "I can't stand the thought of losing any of you."

Zoro's expression softened.

"Do you really think that Luffy would let anything happen to his crew?" he asked.

"No," she said, her tears clearing up, "I know Luffy would never let anything happen."

Zoro was looking at his hands.

Hawke took his hand and held it in both of hers, giving it a gentle squeeze.

"Thank you Zoro," she smiled.

Zoro's face immediately flushed, but he didn't protest.

Hawke released his hand.

"Umm…" she started sheepishly, "Could I, maybe, bring dinner to my room?"

She covered up another yawn.

Zoro smirked and looked down at Chopper.

The reindeer had finished bandaging Hawke's legs.

"Good work Chopper," said Zoro, "Come on, Hawke."

Zoro reached out, but then dropped his hand and motioned to the door instead.

"You just go to bed," he said, turning his face away so they wouldn't see his embarrassment, "I'll bring you your meal there."

Hawke smiled.

"Thank you so much, Zoro," she said.

She turned to Chopper.

"Thank you for treating me, Doctor," she said, "You should probably go up to dinner with Zoro."

Chopper blushed and did his little dance. Then he went up to dinner.

Hawke made her way out of Choppers room, following Zoro.

One of the spare room's had been rearranged into a bedroom for Hawke. She had moved out of Nami's room so that Vivi could take her place there.

"Now get to bed," said Zoro, gesturing towards the door of her room, "I'll come right back down with some food."

He turned to go up the stairs. Hawke watched his retreating back and suddenly felt emotion well up in her throat.

"Wait, Zoro!" she called and ran up behind him.

She wrapped her arms around him and pressed her face into his back.

Zoro choked and froze. He could feel the warmth of her tears through his shirt.

"Really, thank you," she said through a muffled sob, "No one has ever been this nice to me or thought this much about me in a long time…"

Zoro stuttered.

"Uh-um… don't mention it," he said, grateful that she couldn't see his face.

Hawke slowly let go and took a step back.

Zoro turned to face her, his face bowed.

"I… I don't know what I would do if you got hurt or sick," he muttered, "You need to take good care of yourself… and I'm going to make sure you do."

Hawke's eyes widened and she looked up at Zoro.

He was standing in front of her, his head bowed and his arms crossed over his chest. His fists were clenched. She could tell he was waiting for her to reply.

Hawke bent over and looked up, so she could see Zoro's face.

"I'll be careful from now on," she smiled through her tears, "I need to stay strong to make sure you can count on me."

Zoro raised his head. His face was set but relaxed.

"Well I guess I better get you some food," he said.

They stood facing each other a moment longer. Hawke smiled and wiped away her tears.

"I guess I'll get ready for bed then," she laughed.

Zoro relaxed his arms and smirked. Then he turned and started down the hall.

"I'll be right back," he said over his shoulder as he headed up to the kitchen.

Hawke entered her room and closed the door.

She stayed leaning against the door.

She had never been told to take care of herself. Not even by the marines who had adopted her.

They had had a routine that they kept her on. Training, sleeping, eating, it was all scheduled. She had enjoyed it, and she had been treated nicely.

But Zoro had told her to take care of herself. And he wanted to make sure she did.

Well it was true that if I got sick or injured, I wouldn't be able to help my crewmates, she thought, Zoro was right about that.

Zoro was concerned about her.

Hawke made her way over to her bed, taking Zoro's picture out of her pocket.

I'll clean this right now as a thank you for him, she thought.

As she looked down at the frame, she stopped walking.

What is this feeling? She thought.

She felt warm all over, her heart was beating fast and her breath was shallow. Her hand holding the frame was shaking.

I hope I'm not actually going to get sick now, she thought worriedly.

"Well I'd better get changed then," she muttered, "I don't want to sleep in these dirty clothes. But first I'll get this picture clean."

~Zoro walked into the kitchen. The rest of the crew and Vivi had already sat down.

"Where's Hawke?" asked Luffy, stuffing a chicken leg into his mouth.

"Hawke's resting," said Zoro, "I'll bring her down some food."

"Is Hawke-san sick?" asked Sanji, looking at Chopper.

Chopper shook his head.

"She had some injuries on her legs, but I patched them up already," said the reindeer, "She just needs rest and nourishment. Nobody bother her too much."

Nami and Vivi exchanged worried glances.

"We kept telling her to get more sleep," said Nami, "But she would just laugh it off and tell us she was okay."

"She'll be fine as long as she takes it easy for a few days," Chopper reassured the crew.

"Well anyways," said Zoro as he filled a plate with food, "I'll take this down to her."

He grabbed a cup and filled it with water and headed for the door.

"Oh yeah," he called back over his shoulder, "Usopp, you're on watch tonight."

"What?" shouted Usopp, "I don't even get a say!?"

But Zoro had already gone downstairs.

Nami and Vivi watched him go, then they exchanged looks again, giggling.

"What's up with you two?" muttered Usopp, still scowling after Zoro.

"Zoro certainly takes good care of Hawke, don't you think?" giggled Nami.

"He still has his sickness," said Usopp, "Can't you do anything for him Chopper? Zoro's been like that for a while."

Chopper scratched his head.

"I've never seen these symptoms before," he said, rubbing his chin, thinking.

"Zoro will be fine," said Vivi, smiling, "Just let him take care of Hawke and he should be happy."

"And we'll get to Alabasta within a couple days," said Nami, filling her mug, "So we need Hawke to recover as quickly as she can."

Luffy swallowed and gave a satisfied sigh.

"Hawke'll be fine," he said, reaching for some more food, "She'll just sleep it off. That's what she does when she works too hard."

The crew exchanged relieved glances and continued with their meal.

~Zoro made his way back to Hawke's room without dropping anything.

He reached her door and knocked it with his foot.

"Oh, is that you Zoro?" he heard Hawkes voice from inside, "You're just in time, come in."

The door creaked opened from his knock and Zoro pushed it the rest of the way with his shoulder.

"Here's your dinner," he said as he entered her room, "I hope the cook made a good meal tonight."

Hawke was standing over by her bed. He heard her laugh.

"Sanji always makes a good meal," she said, "Could you help me with this?"

Zoro put down the plate and cup and looked over.

Hawke was standing with her back to him. She had changed into a white night dress, but the back was still undone.

"I can't find where the buttons are," she said, looking over her shoulder at him.

Zoro was staring at her back. Her tattoo stood out particularly sharp against her skin, which was paler than usual.

"Zoro?" Hawke asked, turning a little towards him.

"Uh, sure," Zoro stuttered.

He walked up behind her and started fumbling with the buttons.

"Nami gave this to me," said Hawke into the silence, "I guess it was too small for her."

"Well it fits you perfectly," mumbled Zoro, admiring his view from behind her.

"Aw, thank you Zoro," said Hawke, blushing, but oblivious.

"There," he said, as he finished with the last button, "Now just take it easy for a few days. Doctor's orders."

Hawke turned to face him.

The dress did fit her perfectly. Zoro could tell that this had once been Nami's; the front had a very large, plunging neck line.

"That's supposed to be a night dress?" he said, blushing and lowering his eyes.

Hawke twirled and did a curtsey.

"Isn't it the most beautiful thing?" she laughed, "But I guess you don't really care do you, being a man?"

Zoro's blush intensified.

"Sure, it's a nice dress," he snapped, "Now eat and get to bed."

Hawke stuck out her lip in a pout.

"Okay Master Swordsman," she sighed and went over to her table.

As she settled in to eat, she turned back to Zoro.

"You should probably go join the others upstairs," she said, "I don't want you to miss out on the fun because of me. I'll be fine."

Zoro hesitated.

"Are you sure," he said, "You'll be all by yourself."

"I don't mind," smiled Hawke, "I'm happy. I'll go to bed when I'm done, I promise."

Zoro still hesitated.

Hawke got up and pushed him towards the door.

"Really Zoro, I'll be fine," she said.

"Alright," grumbled Zoro and he stepped into the hall.

"Oh!" exclaimed Hawke, "Wait just one second."

She disappeared back into her room.

"Make up your mind," laughed Zoro as he leaned against the door frame.

Hawke returned and handed him his picture frame.

"Here, I finished cleaning it," she smiled.

Zoro took his picture. He looked through the newly clear glass at the photo beneath.

"It's been a while since I've seen their faces," he muttered.

The photo was of a man with glasses and a long brown pony tail and a small girl with blue hair.

"Are they your family?" asked Hawke.

Zoro looked up.

"No," he said, "The man was my master when I was a child, the girl is his daughter."

"You must miss them," said Hawke, seeing the look on Zoro's face.

"Not really," he said, "She died and he isn't my master anymore."

"Oh," said Hawke, her face falling.

"Don't get worked up about it," snapped Zoro when he saw her reaction, "It didn't happen to you."

Hawke tried to lift her expression, but she didn't fully succeed.

"Besides," said Zoro, "She's the reason that I have my dream," he pointed to the girl in the photo.

"I made a vow with her, that one day, one of us would be the world's greatest swordsman," he explained, looking at the picture.

"I see," said Hawke, and she did understand.

"Thanks for cleaning it so fast," said Zoro, tucking the picture into his waist band.

"Well I was worried because it was such an old stain," smiled Hawke, "But it turned out to be easy to get off."

Zoro smirked.

"Well you should get back to your food," he told Hawke.

"Alright," laughed Hawke, "Tell everyone not to worry."

"Yeah," called Zoro, heading up the steps.

Hawke closed her door and settled back down at her table. She ate as much as she could handle and drank all the water that Zoro had brought down.

He treats me so well, she thought as she put down her mug. He's someone… really special, she blushed at her plate.

It's cute that he keeps that picture, she thought as she got into her bed. That promise must mean the world to him.

She respected that Zoro put his captain and his dream before everything. She felt the same way about Luffy.

And she could appreciate how much Zoro trained, having been training alongside him some of the time.

He had kept his word and had been teaching her more one sword techniques. With his help she had gotten even stronger. She wanted to keep getting stronger, so she could keep up with Zoro and Luffy always be able to have their backs.

Hawke's mind was full of these thoughts as she drifted off to sleep.

She was already in a deep sleep when Zoro came back to collect her plate and cup. So she didn't see him come over to her bedside or feel him stroke her hair before picking up her clothes and leaving the room quietly.


	16. Chapter 16: Alabasta: The Older Brother

**Chapter 16**

**Alabasta: The Older Brother**

Hawke woke up with a luxurious stretch and got out of bed.

"I wonder how long I slept?" she muttered as she looked out her window.

The sun was high in the cloudless, blue sky.

She walked over to the door and opened it.

There was a sudden thump and Zoro fell backwards onto the floor at Hawke's feet.

She stood there, looking down at him.

"Oh, good," Zoro yawned, sitting up, "You're finally awake."

Hawke knelt down.

"What are you doing on the floor?" she smiled at Zoro.

The swordsman's face flushed.

"I was just waiting for you to get up," he spluttered, "You've been in here for two days."

"What?" said Hawke, her eyes widening.

Chopper came out of his room.

"Yay! Hawke's awake!" he shouted and ran over to hug her leg.

"Chopper?" asked Hawke, patting the top of his hat, "How long have I been asleep?"

Chopper let go of her leg and stepped back.

"You've been asleep for all of yesterday and half of this one," said the doctor, "You're body must have been pushed well beyond its limit."

"Oh my," Hawke gasped, "I don't usually sleep that long."

"Luffy told me that you did this often when you were younger," said Chopper nodding, "This isn't a good habit, Hawke. Your body won't be able replenish its energy if you keep staying awake for long periods of time."

Hawke looked ashamed.

"I know it's not normal," she mumbled, "But I wasn't used to deciding when to sleep on my own."

"Well, it was a good thing Zoro told you to sleep when you did," said Chopper and he looked over at the swordsman, he stood on tip toe and whispered into Hawke's ear, "He's been sleeping in front of your door the whole time."

"Really?" Hawke said, and looked up at Zoro.

Zoro met her gaze but said nothing. Hawke blushed and looked back to Chopper.

"Well I think I'll head up to the kitchen," she said, "I'm starving!"

"Wait," said Zoro, fishing something out of his belt, "You should change your clothes first."

Hawke looked down and realized she was still wearing her night dress.

"Oh yes," she blushed, "I can't go out in this."

Zoro handed her a set of clothes.

Hawke took her leather jacket and shorts, then she frowned.

"This isn't mine," she said, holding up a yellow tank-top.

"Uh, yeah I know," muttered Zoro.

Hawke gave him a questioning look.

"Zoro tried to wash your clothes," put in Chopper, pulling on Hawkes dress, "But he shrank your shirt so small, it wouldn't even fit me."

"Shut up!" snapped Zoro.

"You washed my clothes, Zoro?" smiled Hawke, "Thank you so much."

"No, I didn't," glowered the swordsman, "I gave them to Nami… after. Sorry for ruining your shirt."

"Oh it's fine," smiled Hawke, "It was getting to small for me anyways."

She looked at the tank-top again.

"Still," she hesitated, "It's a little skimpier than I would like."

"Well it is Nami's," giggled Chopper.

Hawke smiled down at the reindeer.

"It'll do fine," laughed Hawke, "I'll meet you guys upstairs," she said as she closed her door.

Zoro rounded on Chopper.

"You didn't have to tell her that!" he whispered menacingly.

"But Hawke liked it," whimpered Chopper.

Zoro stopped, then straightened.

"Let's go up on deck," he snapped.

Chopper followed the swordsman up onto the deck of the Merry.

When Hawke joined them, she was greeted by the view of a city.

"Where are we?" she gasped in awe as she went over to the railing and looked out at the scenery.

"We made it to Alabasta this morning," said Zoro, who was leaning on the railing.

The kingdom of Alabasta was a desert kingdom. There was sand everywhere and the heat of the sun beat down on the land. Hawke could already feel herself getting sweaty.

"Phew," she said, wiping her forehead, "It sure is hot."

Hawke reached up and tied her hair back in a ponytail to get it off her neck.

She looked around.

"Where is everybody else?" she asked, glancing across the deck.

"They all went into the city to get supplies," said Chopper, hanging off the railing, "We're leaving the Merry here and walking to another city. Vivi's in a real hurry to get to the rebel leaders camp."

"We were going to stay here until you woke up, and then go meet up with the others," said Zoro.

"Should we go now then?" asked Hawke, "I must have kept you all waiting."

"Yeah, let's go," said Zoro, swinging over the railing and onto the ground.

Chopper changed into his most human form and jumped onto the ground. Hawke climbed over the railing and lowered herself down.

"Alright," said Hawke, "Let's go find the rest of the crew."

The three set off towards the city.

Hawke stared at the bustling streets around her. The citizens were going about their daily business, casting curious glances at the trio as they walked by.

"This is an amazing place," said Hawke, staring up at the buildings.

Zoro grunted.

"I can't stand this heat," panted Chopper, he was in his walking point form, "I was made for cold places."

Hawke gave Chopper a sympathetic look.

"Why don't you go find a nice shady place," she told the reindeer, "We'll catch up with you later."

"Okay," mumbled Chopper, and he wandered away.

Hawke watched him disappear into the crowd.

"Do you think he'll be okay?" she asked, turning to Zoro.

He wasn't there.

"Zoro?" called Hawke, "Where did he go?"

She tried picking him out of the crowd. But it was no use. Zoro was nowhere to be seen.

"Did he get lost already?" she wondered.

Hawke's stomach grumbled.

"I need to find a place to eat," she muttered.

Hawke made her way down the street. Suddenly, an aroma caught her attention.

"Mmm," she said, "That smells delicious!"

She made her way down the street to a restaurant.

"Perfect," she smiled and pushed the door open.

Hawke entered a brightly lit, average looking room. There were many tables, most of them occupied, and a large bar at the back.

Hawke made her way to the bar and sat down.

"Could I have something to eat, please?" she asked the barkeep.

"Of course little lady," said the man behind the bar, "But I think you should find another seat," he added in a lower voice, tilting his head towards the end of the bar.

Hawke glanced over. There was another man sitting at the end of the bar. He didn't look like he was from Alabasta. He had a large orange hat, dark shorts and wasn't wearing a shirt.

Hawke's eyes widened. There was a large tattoo covering the man's back. It was a large purple cross with a white skull placed in its center. The skull was distinguished by a large, half-moon, mustache.

That's Whitebeard's mark! She thought, and judging by that hat, this must be his second division commander: Fire-Fist Ace!

Then something clicked in Hawke's mind. Ace… Luffy had said that his older brother's name was Ace.

Hawke glanced around the bar. All the other occupants were watching the man distrustfully.

"Fire-Fist Ace?" she asked to the man at the end of the bar, her heart began pounding.

The man stopped eating and turned towards her.

"Who are you, cutie?" the man asked.

"You are Fire-Fist Ace?" asked Hawke again, breathlessly.

"Yeah, that's me," Ace muttered as he turned his attention back to his food.

Hawke glanced at one of Ace's plates.

"I'll have some of that," she said, pointing to the plate.

The barkeep nodded.

"Be careful, Miss," he cautioned.

Hawke got up and moved to a stool closer to Ace.

"Do you know Monkey D. Luffy?" she asked quietly.

Ace choked on his food and swallowed.

He met Hawkes gaze, pulling a piece of paper out of his pocket.

He held up the paper. It was Luffy's wanted poster.

"You could say I'm looking for him," he said.

Hawke stared at the poster. She doubted that this man was a bounty hunter.

"He said he had an older brother…" she said casually, looking over the top of the poster at Ace.

His eyes widen.

"Is he here?!" he asked eagerly, "How do you know him?"

Hawke smiled. So he was Luffy's brother! That means that she had found her other brother!

"He's my captain," she said excitedly, "I know that he's here somewhere, but I'm not sure exactly where."

Ace laughed.

"That sounds like him," he said, returning to his plate, "It looks like he's doing okay for himself," he added, eyeing her.

Hawke blushed. How should I tell him? She thought.

"Oh no, it's nothing like that," she spluttered, "I'm the scout."

She stared at him. He looked even cooler than she had imagined him. No wonder Luffy looks up to him so much, she thought.

Hawke opened her mouth to say something, then stopped. What exactly was she going to say?

Ace finished his plate and put down his fork.

"I'd like to see my weak little brother again," he said, leaning back and looking at the ceiling, "I have a bit of time to spend with him while I'm here."

"That'd be great!" exclaimed Hawke, smiling.

Now I can get to know my oldest brother! She thought excitedly.

Just then, someone else entered the restaurant.

Hawke heard the other occupants gasp and start muttering amongst themselves.

She turned to see who had come in.

"The marines?" she gasped, "What are they doing here?"

She sensed Ace tense up.

"Well, well, well," said one of the marines as he came forward, "Not the pirate I was looking for, but you're even better."

The marine that had spoken was a very large, muscular man. He had white hair and was smoking two cigars.

Ace turned on his stool.

"What business does an infamous pirate like you have in this country?" asked Smoker

"I'm searching for my little brother," said Ace.

There was a pause.

"What should I do?" asked Ace sarcastically.

"Sit there and let me arrest you," said Smoker.

"Rejected," laughed Ace.

Hawke stood up. She wasn't going to let her brother slip away just after she'd met him. He didn't even know who she was yet!

"He hasn't done anything wrong," she said, standing between Ace and Smoker.

"What are you doing?" muttered Ace.

Smoker raised an eyebrow.

"Who is this?" he asked.

"I just met her," Ace shrugged.

Hawke glanced back over her shoulder. And I don't want this to be the last time you meet me, she thought.

"Hmph," grunted Smoker, "You're not from around here either, are you?"

Hawke met the marines gaze.

"No, I just arrived in this city," she said.

"Well, where did you come from?" asked Smoker.

Hawke knew he was trying to get information from her.

"The East Blue," she replied.

"Hmm," said Smoker, "You wouldn't, by any chance, know a pirate by the name of Straw Hat Luffy?"

Hawke stood a little taller. She wasn't going to lie about this in front of Ace.

"As a matter of fact," she stated, "He's my captain!"

The marine sighed.

"It's a shame I have to arrest you too," he said, and suddenly his fist turned into smoke.

Hawke stepped backwards, reaching into her jacket.

Just then there was a huge crashing noise at the front of the restaurant. Smoker suddenly shot forwards, hitting Hawke, who then hit Ace.

The sandwiched trio was slammed through the back wall of the restaurant. The force of whatever had hit them shot them through three more buildings before they hit a wall and collapsed in a heap.

"Ouch," whimpered Hawke.

She was stuck in between Smoker and Ace.

Upon hearing her whimper, the two men started moving. Ace got up and looked back towards the restaurant.

"Asshole," he seethed, "Who the hell was that?"

He started stalking back towards the restaurant.

Smoker got up and pulled Hawke out of the rubble.

"Can you stay on your feet?" he asked, waving a couple of marines over.

Hawke put pressure on her left ankle and her knee buckled. She shook her head.

"You two!" commanded Smoker to the marines who had just showed up, "Arrest this girl, but be careful, she's injured."

No, Hawke thought, I can't get caught now.

She wriggled free of Smoker's grip.

"I have no choice," she whispered and she spread her wings.

"What the hell!" shouted Smoker and he grabbed out, trying to get a hold of Hawke.

She beat her wings and flew up into the air.

"Catch that girl!" shouted Smoker.

Hawke looked down and saw a group of marines separate from the squad and start following her.

She flew faster.

"I need to find the others," she muttered, searching the streets below.

Suddenly, her search was cut short. She was hit from behind and found herself surrounded in a net.

"What?!" she cried as she fell towards the ground.

Hawke landed with a thump in a cloud of dust. She groaned and brought her wings back into tattoo form.

"We got her," she heard a man say, "She must be a devil fruit user. She won't be able to do anything in that net."

"Good work," she heard another voice say, "Now we have to get her to the Boss."

"Are you sure it's her he wants?" asked the other man.

"He said he wanted one of the Strawhat crew," replied the man, "She said that Strawhat was her captain."

"Alright," said the other.

Hawke felt herself being picked up and thrown over a shoulder.

"Let me go!" she cried, trying to twist out of the net.

"Calm down, Sweet Heart," the man carrying her said, "We have a long trip ahead of us. You don't want to exhaust yourself now."

The other man laughed.

"And don't think about trying anything," he said, "That's a sea prism net. You can't use your devil fruit powers in there."

As she was struggled for freedom, Hawke thought about her situation.

They thought she had devil fruit powers. That was an advantage she could use to surprise them later on and maybe free herself.

Why had she let herself get caught again?!, she thought. Now I'm of no use to Luffy. She hung her head.

Just then, her surroundings caught her attention.

"Wait a second," she said, "Why aren't we going to the harbor? Isn't that where your ship is?"

The men laughed.

"We aren't marines, Sweet Heart," the man carrying her said, "We're taking you to our Boss, Mister 0."

Hawke gasped.

"Mister 0!" she cried, "You're from Baroque Works aren't you! Let me go!"

She started struggling even harder.

"Hey, stay still!" grunted the man carrying her.

Hawke twisted her body one more time and managed to loosen the man's grasp.

He dropped her and she fell onto the ground. Hawke's head cracked against a rock and she cried out in pain.

"Don't hurt her," cautioned the other man, "The Boss will be angry if she's too damaged."

Hawke groaned as she was lifted into a sitting position.

"She sure is a cute one," said one of the men. Hawke could see that he was wearing a red shirt.

"We should take her out of that net," said the other man, who was wearing a blue bandana, "She'll be easier to carry."

The man in the red shirt reached inside the net and put handcuffs on Hawke.

He was surprised when she didn't try to fight back.

"She doesn't look so good," he said, taking the net off her head.

Hawke was staring straight ahead, her eyes glazed. She was having trouble focusing and her head was pounding.

The man with the bandana waved his hand in front of her face.

Hawke focused on the hand.

"I … think I hit my head," she mumbled before slumping forward.

"Geez!" said the man, catching her.

"Well she'll be really easy to carry now," said the man in the red shirt, hoisting her up on his shoulder again, "Come on, we have to get out of this city before dark."

The two men set off again, carrying Hawke out into the desert.


	17. Chapter 17: Hawke's Missing!

**Chapter 17**

**Hawke's Missing!**

Zoro had found the rest of the crew and was waiting in the shade of some ruined buildings with them.

"Here they are," said Vivi, looking down the street.

Sanji and Chopper had returned with supplies.

Chopper flopped down into the shade, panting.

"It's too hot," gasped the reindeer.

Zoro looked down the street, then back at the doctor.

"Where's Hawke?" he asked, "Wasn't she with you, Chopper?"

"I thought I left her with you," said Chopper, cooling off a little.

"You guys wandered off," muttered Zoro, glancing back towards the city.

"You're the one who wandered off Zoro!" yelled Chopper.

"Whatever," the swordsman grunted, "It isn't safe to be out there alone. I saw the marines from Loguetown and a pirate from Whitebeards crew looking for Luffy."

"What?" gasped Nami, "Smoker followed us all the way from Loguetown?!"

Just then they heard a commotion.

The crew peeked out over the wall of the ruined building.

"It's probably just some dumb pirate," said Sanji, lighting a cigarette.

"A dumb pirate?!" exclaimed Usopp

"Yeah, that's him," said Nami, catching sight of a red shirt and the straw hat, "And he's brought some marines with him."

"Hey guys! There you are!" waved Luffy, and he changed his course.

"No don't come over here!" shouted Nami.

"Run!" shouted Zoro.

"Damn you, Luffy!" shouted Usopp.

The crew picked up their supplies and ran towards the desert.

"Get back here Strawhat!" they heard Smoker's voice yell over the noise.

Suddenly a fist made of smoke towered over Luffy.

The captain ran as fast as he could, but the fist was bearing down on him.

Just as the smoke reached out to grab Luffy, a burst of flame appeared out of nowhere and stopped Smoker's attack in its tracks.

Suddenly, a man appeared between the marines and the Strawhats, parts of his body seemed to be on fire.

"Ace?" gasped Luffy, "Ace!"

"You never change, Luffy," the man said over his shoulder, "You go on ahead, I'll catch up with you later."

"Okay," said Luffy and immediately turned and ran down a side street.

"Who was that?" asked Vivi, "Someone you knew?"

"That's my brother!" yelled Luffy, catching up to them.

"Brother!?" shouted the rest of the crew, in shock.

"You never told me you had a brother," said Nami.

"Yeah," laughed Luffy.

"Well, I guess I shouldn't be too surprised," muttered Zoro, "But what's he doing on the Grand Line?"

"Ace is a pirate," laughed Luffy, "He left three years before me to find the One Piece."

"Eh?!" the crew exclaimed in disbelief.

The crew made it back to the Merry without getting spotted by the Marines again.

"Well that was an abrupt start," said Usopp, bringing his bag into the kitchen.

"We only stopped here to get supplies," said Vivi, helping him.

The crew rushed around the ship, preparing to set sail.

"Alright," said Nami, "Let's go!"

There was a pause.

"I feel like we're missing someone," muttered Usopp.

"And the one we're missing is the most important," glowered Nami.

"That idiot!" growled Sanji.

"And Hawke's still not here," said Zoro, suddenly.

The crew froze.

"Yeah," said Usopp, "Hawke's missing too. We should be more worried about her."

"We should be more worried about us right now," snapped Nami, "We'll set sail and find a place to hide where the marines won't find us. Then we'll look for Luffy and Hawke."

The ship was underway and sailing towards a small cove that Vivi thought they would be able to hide the Merry in.

Nami was up in the crow's nest.

Suddenly she called down.

"I can see him!"

"Really?" asked Usopp.

"That's definitely him," muttered Zoro, glancing over to shore, "And he's got that dumb look on his face."

Luffy stretched out his arm and catapulted himself over to the Merry, smashing into Sanji and Chopper.

"Oh, sorry guys," laughed Luffy.

"You idiot!" snarled Sanji, "Do you know how much trouble you've caused?"

Just then Ace appeared on the rail of the ship.

After some short introductions, the crew invited Ace on board for some tea.

But then, some Baroque Works ships came out of nowhere and started attacking the Merry.

"I'll handle this," Ace said and jumped into his own little, fire-powered boat.

The crew looked on in awe as Fire-Fist Ace destroyed five ships with a single blow.

"Wow!" exclaimed Usopp, his jaw hitting the floor.

The way was cleared and the Going Merry sailed through and on towards the next harbor Vivi wanted to land at.

Ace was heading to the same city that the Strawhats were.

"I'm looking for a man named Blackbeard," he explained, "And I heard he was seen in Yuba."

"That's where the rebel army is based," said Vivi, "I want to reach the city as soon as possible."

"This'll be a fun trip, right Ace?" laughed Luffy.

"Sure," smiled the older brother.

Then he looked around.

"I thought that cutie from the restaurant said she was your scout… I guess she was lying," he shrugged.

Luffy froze.

"Where's Hawke?!" he shouted.

"We haven't seen her since before you made the marines chase after us," said Zoro quickly, then glared over at Luffy's brother.

"Wait," said Nami, looking at Ace, "How do you know about Hawke?"

"She was at the restaurant I was eating at, the one Luffy crashed into," explained Ace, jumping onto the railing and taking a seat, "She must have recognized me because she asked me about you, Luffy."

Luffy gave him a small, one sided smile.

Ace looked startled.

_Luffy's really upset,_ he thought.

"Well why didn't you bring her here?" snapped Zoro, looking back towards the town.

"I forgot about her after Luffy smashed me through three houses," Ace said, "I got distracted."

The crew looked back at the vanishing city.

"There sure were a lot of marines there," said Chopper nervously, "What if they caught Hawke?!"

"She'll be fine," said Luffy, but he was also looking worriedly back the way they had come.

"Oh, I just remembered," said Ace suddenly, "I heard some marines talking about how two of their troop members had disappeared with a captive. Maybe they caught her and kidnapped her."

"What?!" exclaimed Usopp.

"Why would you say such mean things," wailed Chopper, "We need to rescue Hawke!"

"Wait," said Vivi, she had been silent until now, "Going on what Ace just said, I think that this might have something to do with Baroque Works."

"What do you mean?" asked Zoro.

"Well, you've interfered with a lot of their plans because of me," said Vivi, looking at Luffy, "They know most of your crew and they'll want to make sure you don't ruin the most important part of their plan. They might have kidnapped Hawke to have some leverage on you to make you stay back."

Luffy's face darkened.

"They took my little sister?!" he muttered.

"Wait," Ace gawked, "That girl was your little sister?!"

_Now it makes sense_, he thought.

"Yeah," said Luffy, turning to Ace.

"Shouldn't you have recognized her?" asked Usopp.

"I've never seen her before," said Ace, "Luffy only told me about her."

"Well what do we do now?" asked Zoro, pacing back and forth.

"I think we should continue on the way we planned," said Vivi.

"What?" sobbed Chopper, flailing his arms, "And just leave Hawke?"

"She can defend herself," said Vivi, "Plus, we don't know where she is and she doesn't know where we are. We would only be losing time."

Luffy looked back towards the city.

"If Baroque Works has taken her, they'll bring her to Crocodile…" he muttered.

"Yes," said Vivi.

"And he's the guy who's ass I have to kick anyways," Luffy muttered again.

"Yeah," said Zoro.

Luffy was silent for a few moments.

"Then it's settled," said the captain, turning to face the crew, "We'll keep going. We're going to get to Crocodile anyways, and Vivi needs to move fast. I know Hawke can take care of herself."

"Okay Captain," said Sanji, "We will hurry to help Vivi-san and save Hawke-san."

"Alright," muttered Zoro, "But only because Hawke can fight for herself."

Ace watched the crew as they agreed on their captain's decision and smiled. His little brother had found strong nakama who could protect him. He felt that he could worry a little less now.

Then he frowned.

Why hadn't Hawke told him that she was Luffy's little sister? He definitely wouldn't have forgotten about her if she had, he would have made sure she got out of there safely.

He watched as Luffy went to sit on the sheep's head. He could tell that his little brother was much more worried about Hawke than he let on.

Ace smiled.

He knew exactly how Luffy felt right now, and he was kind of proud that Luffy could feel like that for someone else.

He walked over to the base of the figurehead.

"If she's anything like you said she was, back then," he said, looking out towards the horizon, "She'll be there waiting for you when you finally get to Crocodile."

He heard Luffy shift in his position.

"Yeah," he muttered, then looked down at Ace and smiled, "Let's go have food!"

Luffy jumped down and ran towards the kitchen.

"Sanji!" he shouted.

"Yeah," said Sanji, emerging from the kitchen then walking over to the rail, "Supper's ready Nami-san, Vivi-san."

"Coming," said Vivi.

The crew made their way to the galley for a dinner that was quieter than usual.


	18. Chapter 18: Tank and Bran

**Chapter 18**

**Tank and Bran**

Hawke slowly regained consciousness. She became aware of a pain in her head and a weight on her hands.

_Oh right_, she thought, _they cuffed me_.

She slowly opened her eyes and took in her surroundings.

It was dark. She was propped against a rock, facing a clearing with a small fire going in its center.

The two men who had kidnapped her were sitting close to the fire.

Hawke could smell their meal cooking. Her stomach growled loudly; she hadn't had a chance to eat at the restaurant.

The men turned around when they heard her stomach.

"Oh, look," said the one with the red shirt, "Our dark angel is awake."

"And she sounds hungry," said the man with the blue bandana.

He got up and carried a bowl over to her.

"Here," he said, putting the bowl down in front of Hawke, "We can't let you die on us."

Hawke stayed still, staring up at the man.

He seemed to grow uncomfortable and went back to sit by the fire.

Hawke looked down at the bowl. It was full of stew.

_It does smell good_, she thought as her stomach grumbled again.

Hawke reached out and picked up the bowl with her hands. It was a little tricky with the handcuffs, but she managed to drink the stew. She finished her meal quickly and got up.

_Oh good_, she thought, _my ankle feels fine now_.

Hawke looked down and noticed that her legs weren't chained. She quickly glanced around. They had brought her to what seemed to be the middle of the desert. There was nothing but sand for miles in every direction.

"There's no chance of you surviving if you ran away from us," said one of the men over his shoulder at her.

Hawke looked towards him, then back out to the desert. A sudden wind blew through the clearing and chilled Hawke to her bones.

_He's probably right_, she thought, rubbing her already cold fingers together_, even if I flew away, I wouldn't make it far in the heat_. She shivered, _or in this cold_.

She looked over at the fire again. And, swallowing her pride, walked quietly over to the warmth.

"Look who's come to join us," said the man with the red shirt, "We have some fine company now, Bran. Tuck in your shirt."

Bran laughed and looked at Hawke.

"You won't survive the night if you spend it all by yourself," he had an uncomfortable glint in his eye, "You'll have to get cozy with us if you don't want to freeze."

Hawke stiffened and looked at the man. He was looking at her with eager eyes.

She shivered and stepped back.

"Don't scare her off," said the man in the red shirt.

"I was just having some fun," laughed Bran, "It isn't often that we get such a nice looking captive."

Hawke took another step back and looked out at the desert, reweighing her options.

"You're going to make her try to run away," complained the man in red, "Then we'll waste more time trying to find her again."

"Fine," muttered Bran, going back to his food.

"Come sit down, lovely," said the other man, "My name is Tank, this is my fellow billion, Bran."

Hawke came forward again, but stayed standing.

"And what is your name, Dark Angel?" asked Tank.

Hawke eyed them both warily. She definitely didn't feel safe. She decided to stay silent.

"What's wrong?" taunted Bran, "You were so eager to talk when we caught you."

Hawke glared at him and he became silent.

She sat down, across the fire from the two men, warming her hands and arms.

They were both watching her.

"That's a unique power you have," said Tank finally.

Hawke looked at him.

"What devil fruit did you eat?" asked Bran.

Hawke thought quickly.

"The Feather-Feather fruit," she said, hoping that sounded real.

"Cool," said Bran, "And now that you're talking again. What's your name?"

Hawke grew silent again.

"She's a stubborn one," laughed Tank, scraping the leftovers of his bowl into the fire.

"You would be too if you'd been kidnapped," snapped Hawke.

Bran laughed.

"That's true," he said, also scraping out his bowl.

Another gust of wind blew in through the rocks. Hawke shivered.

"You aren't exactly dressed for the desert, sweet heart," said Tank.

Hawke looked at the two men. They were both wearing robes over their clothes and had head covers on. Then she looked down at her clothes. She was still wearing her shorts, her leather jacket and Nami's tank top.

She pulled the neck line of the tank top up and folded the corners of her jacket together, wrapping them around her body.

"You really will freeze, if you stay like that," sneered Bran.

Hawke jerked her head around to face him.

"Just keep the fire going, I'll be fine," she snapped.

"Alright," said Bran, turning away.

Hawke watched as they both dragged out two sleeping bags and placed them around the fire.

The men got into their beds and settled down for the night.

Hawke stayed awake, watching the fire dance.

_What a mess I've gotten into_, she thought. _I'm sorry Luffy, I should have met up with you guys when I had the chance. Now where are you? _

Hawke looked up at the stars. She knew that Luffy would continue with Vivi's quest, he would trust her to be alright by herself for now.

Just then a thought struck her. _She was being taken to Mister 0, Crocodile._

That was the same man that they needed to defeat to help Vivi save her kingdom. So if she stayed near Crocodile, Luffy would definitely come and fight him, then she could rejoin her crew.

Hawke smiled and brought her eyes back down to the fire. She had a plan. She'd stay a captive and try to stay close to Crocodile and wait for Luffy to come.

She watched the shadows dance on the rocks. The swirling patterns slowly lulled her into a doze. She slumped sideways onto the ground and fell asleep.

Hawke woke up shivering violently. The fire had burnt low and the wind had picked up. She propped herself up and looked around for her captors. They were both snoring, wrapped up in their sleeping bags.

Hawke got up and made for the pile of twigs at the edge of the clearing. She picked up as many as she could with her cuffed hands and threw them on the fire, which immediately flared up and regained its warmth.

_Geez its cold_, she thought and tried rubbing her arms to get some feeling back into them.

Hawke started bouncing up and down, trying to generate some heat.

Her movements caused one of the men to wake up.

"Told you you'd be cold like that," said Bran, sitting up.

"Well if you'd been minding the fire, it wouldn't have gotten so cold," snapped Hawke, then she lowered her face.

_I shouldn't be so ungrateful_, she thought, _they did feed me and I am still alive._

"Sorry," she said out loud.

Bran looked surprised.

"That's alright," he said, then he paused, "You know, we aren't evil and mean. We're just following orders."

Hawke looked at him. _That's still no reason for me to trust you_, she thought.

"How far do you have to take me?" she asked, still jumping.

"About six days travel, if we keep our speed up," replied Bran.

Hawke groaned and shivered again.

Bran glanced at her.

"You know," he said, lifting the edge of his blanket, "You could always cuddle in with us."

"No, thank you!" spluttered Hawke, blushing.

"Aww, come on," said Bran, "You'll catch cold out there with nothing but shorts on."

Hawke looked at his blanket. It did look warm.

"I can't," she flustered, "I wouldn't be comfortable."

"You mean being close to a man?" asked Bran in a taunting voice, "Come on, sweet heart, I won't bite."

"He might, you know," Tank laughed, the conversation had woken him up.

"But seriously, sweetie," said Tank, turning towards Hawke, "You will get sick if you don't get warm now."

"Don't you have an extra blanket," pleaded Hawke, she really didn't want to sleep with either of them, she'd rather freeze.

"No, we don't," said Bran, crossing his arms.

"But I'm sure Bran would gladly give up his for a beautiful girl such as yourself," said Tank, looking at Bran.

"What?!" exclaimed Bran, "No way, it's freezing out."

"And how do you think she's feeling right now?" persuaded Tank.

Bran looked over at Hawke.

She was leaning very close to the fire and was still hopping up and down.

"Why can't she just come sleep in here with me?" he whined.

"Just give her your blanket," said Tank.

Bran sat debating to himself for a few seconds. Then he reached a decision and grumpily threw his blanket over to Hawke.

Hawke caught it.

"Oh thank you so much!" she exclaimed, trying to wrap it around herself. But her hands were still stuck together and she just ended up dropping it.

"Oops," she said, blushing and trying to reach down to pick it back up.

"She's a cutie," laughed Tank, getting up, "Here, lie down and I'll cover you."

Hawke blushed.

"Thank you," she mumbled.

Once she was covered, and Tank had settled back into his sleeping bag, Hawke felt quite warm. She quickly fell asleep again and didn't wake until the sun peeked over the horizon.

Hawke was shaken awake the next morning by Tank.

"Wakey-wakey, Princess," he said, "We're packing up camp."

Hawke blearily opened her eyes to the bright sun.

"Wow, it's hot," she said, suddenly registering the temperature and throwing off Bran's blanket.

"You really aren't used to the desert are you?" teased Bran, picking up his blanket and putting it into a pack.

"I only got to this land yesterday," said Hawke, "And before that we were on a winter island."

"Well, here," said Bran, giving her another bowl, "Eat up. We need to start moving soon."

Hawke took the bowl, then lost her grip and dropped it, spilling the soup onto the sand.

"I'm sorry," she said, looking down at her mess, "It's just really hard to do things with these handcuffs."

"Well, you'll have to manage," said Bran, filling up the bowl again.

"I won't run away, I promise," pleaded Hawke, raising her hands, "Please take them off."

"No way," said Bran, "You'd just fly away."

"Do you think I could fly away in this heat?" asked Hawke, "I would last longer running away on foot."

Bran looked at her doubtfully.

Hawke sighed and took her bowl back. She sat down and drank her soup quickly.

"Thanks," she said, holding the bowl up for Bran.

Tank had already packed up the food and supplies.

"Can you walk now?" he asked her.

Hawke nodded, wiggling her ankle at him for proof.

"Well come on then," he said and started out of the clearing.

Hawke followed and Bran took up position behind her.

They walked all day.

By lunch time Hawke was way too hot. She had to get Bran to undo her handcuffs so she could take off her jacket.

Bran blinked at her as her back was exposed.

"Nice tattoo," was all he said.

Hawke blushed and just kept walking. She was way too hot to care about who saw her tattoo. All she could think about was finding somewhere nice and cool.

By the time the sun started to sink towards the horizon, Hawke was at the end of her strength. She fell onto the sand and couldn't get up.

"Come on, lovely," said Tank, helping her up, "We're almost there."

Hawke stumbled on and finally reached another rock outcropping, where she collapsed again in the shade.

"Our captive isn't doing so well," muttered Bran to Tank.

"If it keeps going on like this," said Tank, looking over at Hawkes tired body, "She won't make it. We'll have to carry her tomorrow."

"Why do we always get the hardest assignments," complained Bran.

"Don't ask me," said Tank, "But at least we got a nice member of their crew and not the swordsman or the cook."

"That's true," admitted Bran, glancing back at Hawke, "How could a nice, pretty girl like that be part of the Strawhat Pirates?"

Tank shrugged.

"Bring her this," he held out a canteen to Bran, "Make sure she takes little sips."

Bran brought the water over to where Hawke was lying down.

"Here," he said, helping her into a sitting position, "Drink this."

Hawke grabbed the canteen and gulped down the water.

"Hey, hey," said Bran, taking the canteen away, "Don't rush, you'll get sick."

Hawke slumped onto his shoulder.

"Thank you so much," she said in a raspy whisper.

Bran looked down at Hawke's face.

She was very sunburnt and her hair was plastered to her sweaty forehead. She looked really pitiful.

He picked her up and brought her over to where Tank was making the fire.

Hawke groaned when she felt the sunlight on her skin again.

"Calm down," he said and put her down.

Tank took a small bottle out of his pack and brought it over to Hawke.

"Will you let me put this on your burn?" he asked.

Hawke opened her eyes to see what he was holding up. It looked safe enough.

She nodded.

Tank put some cream on his finger tips and massaged it into the burnt skin on Hawkes cheeks and shoulders.

She sighed as the cream cooled her skin and soothed her blisters.

"Thank you," she whispered, lying back onto the sand.

It was cool now. The shadows of the rocks were rapidly lowering the temperature.

"She can't go on for five more days like this," muttered Tank, "And we didn't travel as fast today, it'll take us longer than we anticipated."

"We need to keep her relatively healthy for the Boss," said Bran, a worried look on his face.

"We'll have to carry her and keep her wrapped up in your blanket so the sun doesn't get to her," said Tank.

"Why mine?" muttered Bran.

"Quit whining," said Tank, then he looked at Hawke, "I have some good news for you, Bran."

Bran perked up.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Our Dark Angel will have to sleep with one of us tonight," said Tank, "She won't be able to handle the cold again."

"Really?!" exclaimed Bran, looking eagerly at Hawke.

She was lying on the ground and seemed to be dozing. One of her tank-top straps had fallen off her shoulder.

Tank watched his partner.

"I think she should stay with me tonight," he said.

"What?" said Bran, "Why you? It was my idea first."

"And that's why I should take her first," said Tank, putting his hand on Bran's shoulder, "You might get too excited."

Bran folded his arms and sat there pouting.

Tank turned his attention towards Hawke. She had started shivering again.

"We should get her in bed now," he said, "Bran, can you start dinner?"

Bran grumbled, but he took out the pots and began cooking.

Tank got out his sleeping bag and carried Hawke over to it.

Hawke was able to keep her eyes open now, and she gave Tank a questioning look.

"Why are you putting me here?" she asked.

"You won't be able to stand the cold tonight, Lovely," said Tank, "You'll have to sleep with me so you don't freeze."

Hawke started to sit up.

"No, no!" she exclaimed, "I don't want to do that!"

Hawke's burn on her shoulder began to crack. She whimpered and held her injury.

"Don't get excited," said Bran, "You'll hurt yourself. It's his bed or mine."

He looked over at her with hopeful eyes.

Hawke quieted down and stayed where she was, pulling the blanket awkwardly up to her chest.

Bran went back to stirring, glowering at the stew.

They ate in silence.

Bran was still glaring at the fire. Hawke was busy trying to eat without spilling. And Tank was watching Hawke's attempts.

He laughed when she dribbled down her chin and had to bend her arm awkwardly to try and wipe up her mess.

"How did a cute thing like you end up on a pirate crew?" asked Tank.

Hawke lowered her bowl.

"Someone made me a promise a long time ago," she said, "And I finally made them keep it."

"Huh?" said Bran, "That's not a very good explanation."

"I'm sailing around the world with my friends," said Hawke, "And that makes me happy. My dream is to sail to the end of the Grand Line. It just happened by chance that my friends turned out to be pirates."

She looked at the two men sitting across from her.

"Why are you working for Baroque Works? And why does Mister 0 want me?" she asked.

The men exchanged looks.

"The Boss wanted a Strawhat crew member, it was just by chance that we caught you," said Tank, "We have no idea what he wants with you."

"And we started as millions," put in Bran, "We joined for the money and we're trying to work our way up to the Numbers."

"Well, they'll be looking for replacements for Mister 5, Mister 8 and Mister 9," said Hawke, finishing her stew.

"How do you know that?" asked Tank.

"We defeated them," said Hawke, _kind of_, she added to herself.

"What?" Bran gasped.

"Our crew is really strong," she said, putting down her bowl.

"They must be, to take down the Numbers," muttered Tank.

They were looking at Hawke warily.

She stared back at them, covering up a yawn.

"You're too cute to be part of a fearsome pirate crew," said Bran, shaking his head.

"I'm pretty strong," said Hawke defiantly, rubbing her eyes.

"I'll believe that when I see it," laughed Bran, "A little thing like you can't do that much damage. I mean, you barely weigh anything and you're not exactly muscular."

Hawke stuck out her tongue at him.

"Well it's time for bed then," laughed Tank and he headed over to where Hawke was sitting.

Hawke wriggled away from the approaching man.

"Please," she whimpered, "I'll be fine by myself."

"No, you won't," said Tank, standing over her, "Now lie down and get comfortable."

Hawke stared up at Tank. Just then, a chilling gust of wind blew through their camp. Hawke shivered and lay down.

"That's it," said Tank and he got into the sleeping bag.

Hawke had to turn on her side to make room for him. She was blushing furiously and began fidgeting.

"Calm down," said Tank as he got in close behind her.

"Don't touch me!" warned Hawke in a dangerous voice.

"I'll try not to," he said, "But it is close in here."

Hawke shuddered. Tank felt it.

"Am I really that repulsive?" he asked.

"Yes, you are!" called Bran from the other side of the fire.

Hawke lay still.

"No," she said, facing the desert, "You guys are really quite nice."

"Well then why do you not want to be near us?" prodded Tank.

"I'm just not that kind of girl," retorted Hawke, pressing into the edge of the sleeping bag, "And you're technically my enemies, my kidnappers."

"I see," said Tank.

Hawke shuddered again.

But Tank was true to his word. He didn't bother her. And it was very warm under the blankets with the presence of another body. Hawke eventually relaxed and fell asleep.

Hawke was woken the next morning by Tank's movements.

He was getting up to start breakfast.

Hawke let out a small whimper. It was still chilly out and Tank had been her heat source.

"Oh, did I wake you, sweet heart?" said Tank, putting a pot of water over the fire.

Hawke groaned and rolled over, wrapping herself tighter in the blanket.

Tank chuckled.

Hawke rolled back over and watched him prepare breakfast.

"Stew again?" she asked, sitting up.

"Well, in all honesty, it's the only thing we know how to make," said Tank.

Hawke blinked,

"I know how to cook," she said, "Do you want me to make you something else?"

She looked at their ingredients.

"I'm sure I could make something," she said.

Bran got up and stretched.

"Anything that's not stew sounds delicious," he yawned.

Hawke smiled and got up.

She went over to Tank, who moved aside and let her have the cutting board.

Hawke reached for a knife, but the handcuffs inhibited her movements and she only managed to knock it into the sand.

"Ugh," she sighed, looking at her captors, "Please take these off," she held up her hands.

"We can't risk you running away, Princess," said Tank, shaking his head.

"I promise I won't," pleaded Hawke, "I know I wouldn't be able to make it anywhere before I collapse again."

"She has a point," said Bran, "I don' think she'd run away."

"I promise I won't" said Hawke again.

She gave them her puppy eyes.

"Okay, fine," muttered Tank, "But only for cooking. When we're walking you keep them on."

"Okay," sighed Hawke.

Bran unlocked the handcuffs and Hawke flexed her wrists.

The two men kept a close eye on her. But Hawke made no attempt to escape. After all, she wanted to get to Crocodile anyways.

With her hands free, Hawke quickly made grilled sausages and eggs.

"Here you are," she said, handing each of the men a plate, "Eat it while it's hot."

"I don't think it's going to get cold anytime soon," teased Tank as he took a bite.

"This is delicious!" exclaimed Bran, quickly gobbling down the rest of his breakfast, "So much better than stew!"

"I'm glad you like it," smiled Hawke, digging into her own plate.

"Boy, am I glad we kidnapped you," laughed Tank.

Hawke laughed.

"Yes, I'm positive that anyone else on the crew wouldn't cook their captor's breakfast, well Sanji might, but that's only because he really values food."

"So you're not like the rest of the Strawhats," said Bran, "I figured."

"Are you all as strong as they say you are?" asked Tank.

"Oh yes," said Hawke, "Luffy is really strong, and Zoro and Sanji are really good fighters too. I like to think of them as "The Monster Trio"."

"Yeah, I heard the pirate hunter Zoro had joined Strawhat's crew," muttered Bran.

"Every crew member is strong in their specialty," said Hawke, "Otherwise Luffy would have never asked them to join."

"And what's your specialty in?" asked Tank.

"I'm the scout," smiled Hawke, "I have higher than average eyesight and I can fly over islands to inspect them before we land."

"The scout?" said Bran, "I guess that makes sense, for a cutie like you."

Hawke shot him a look.

"I didn't mean anything by that," spluttered Bran.

Tank laughed.

"Well we better get going," he said, "We have a long way to go today."

He motioned for Hawke to come over to him to put the handcuffs back on.

Hawke held out her hands and glanced up at the sun. She could already feel her burns from yesterday start to itch again. She knew she would be worse off than she was yesterday, but she got up and made to start walking.

"Hey, hold it, sweet heart," said Tank, and he threw a blanket around her and wrapped her up in it.

"What are you doing?!" exclaimed Hawke, trying to get untangled.

"You won't last long if you walk like yesterday," said Bran, picking her up and hoisting her over his shoulder, "We need you to stay alive, so we'll carry you."

"But this is embarrassing!" cried Hawke, still struggling, "I look like a burrito!"

Tank laughed.

"You'll have to put up with your embarrassment for now."

Hawke blushed at the sand, but she quieted and they set off again.

The next few days passed similarly. Hawke would cook their meals and then be carried in a blanket.

She kept sharing Tank's bed. She felt more comfortable with him than with Bran, though she still dreaded whenever Tank would come over to get into the sleeping bag.

Her burns slowly healed and her strength returned. Her skin became darker and she began to get used to the desert climate.

Her captors became more trusting of her, and eventually let her keep the handcuffs off all the time.

One night, Bran even asked her if he could see her wings.

"Aren't you scared I'll fly away?" asked Hawke, smiling.

"You've had plenty of chances already," said Bran, crossing his arms.

"That's true," laughed Hawke and she unfolded her wings.

"Wow," muttered Tank, circling her to see her back, "How do they get through your jacket?"

"I cut slits in it," explained Hawke, she turned in a circle, showing off.

"You really do look like an angel," said Bran.

Hawke blushed.

"Why do you think I've been calling her Dark Angel?" laughed Tank, slapping Bran on the back.

Hawke laughed.

"That's an interesting nickname," she said.

Hawke let her wings return to their tattoo form.

"I think it suits you," said Bran.

Hawke blushed.

"You still haven't told us your real name," said Tank, getting into his sleeping bag.

Hawke smiled.

"And I'm not going to," she said, "I prefer the nickname you gave me."

Tank laughed.

"You sure are a stubborn one," he said, lifting up his blanket and offering it to her.

Hawke blushed and began walking over.

"I still don't like this," she said, "Sleeping with someone else, I mean."

"You could change it up, you know," said Bran hopefully.

Hawke glanced over at him.

His hair was sticking sideways out of his bandana. He looked really silly. Hawke laughed.

"I'll only sleep under your blanket if you promise not to touch me," she said, facing Bran.

Bran's eyes lit up.

"I promise," he said quickly.

Hawke gave him a serious look.

"Really," he said, more sincerely this time.

Hawke walked slowly over.

"I'll be watching you Bran," called Tank.

"You had her the whole time," said Bran, "It's my turn, that's fair."

Hawke took off her leather jacket and crawled under the blanket that Bran held out.

"I mean it," she warned, "I'll go back over with Tank if you try anything."

"I know," said Bran, adjusting the covers, "Are you comfortable?"

Hawke turned on her side, her back facing Bran.

"Yes," she said, "Good night."

"Good night," said Bran

"Good night," called Tank.

Hawke let out a little laugh, then closed her eyes and went to sleep.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Hawke was having a dream.

She was back on the Merry with the whole crew.

Luffy was sitting on the Merry's head, laughing and cheering.

Usopp was trying to water ski on some flying fish and Chopper was watching excitedly from the railing.

Nami was lounging in a lawn chair in her bath suit, being waited on by Sanji.

Hawke was lying on a towel on the upper part of the deck. She leaned back on her hands and felt something touch her arm. She looked to her side and saw Zoro was lying on the towel with her.

She smiled and said something to Zoro. He smiled and laughed, then motioned for her to lie down. Hawke did so, putting her head on his chest and cuddling up to his body. She felt very happy.

Just then she heard Zoro's voice.

"You're just jealous she didn't do this to you," he said.

This confused Hawke. She looked up at Zoro. But it wasn't Zoro's face that greeted her.

She was staring up at Bran.

Hawke froze. She had turned around in her sleep and had cuddled up to Bran!

Hawke's eye's widened and she felt her face flush.

"I'm so sorry," she said and sprang up, out of the blankets.

"I didn't mind," said Bran, "You can come back in if you like."

"No!" exclaimed Hawke and she turned away, hiding her face.

"You don't have to be so upset," she heard Bran mutter, almost to himself.

Her shoulders started to shake.

"Hey, calm down, Princess," said Tank again, approaching her.

"Please leave me alone," sobbed Hawke and she started to run.

"Don't run away now!" called Bran, jumping up and starting to go after her.

But Tank held out his arm, blocking Bran.

"I don't think she'll run away," he said, "We still have some time until the sun comes up. Just leave her for a little while."

Bran looked at the place where Hawke had disappeared.

"You were just jealous," he muttered.

"She was obviously having a dream," retorted Tank, "She was thinking of someone else."

Bran's shoulders drooped.

"Yeah, I know," he said to his shoes.

"Huh?" asked Tank.

"She was mumbling something before she woke up," he said, looking out to the desert, "She said "Zoro"."


	19. Chapter 19: Crocodile Appears

**Chapter 19**

**Crocodile Appears**

Hawke hadn't run far.

There was another rock outcropping relatively close to where they had made camp, and she took refuge under an overhanging ledge.

She pulled her knees up to her chest and sat there sobbing.

She missed Zoro.

She missed her whole crew, all of her friends, a lot. Especially Luffy.

But she realized, for the first time, that she missed Zoro a little bit more.

"Why did that have to happen?" she shuddered.

She wiped her hands along her clothes and her legs, trying to get the feeling of Bran's body off her own.

"Why did I do that?" she asked herself, her tears slowly stopping.

Hawke sat there, with her head on her knees, for a long while.

Zoro… her thoughts turned to the green haired swordsman. He had always been looking out for her, had kept an eye on her. From her very first night as a member of the crew, he had been watching over her.

A sudden realization struck Hawke. Had it been Zoro who'd saved her from flying off the Merry when they were going over Reverse Mountain?

_No wonder he was so grumpy afterwards,_ she thought. She'd gone and thanked Sanji directly after the incident. _And that was right in front of him too!_ she thought, ashamed of her actions.

She recalled when Zoro had stayed outside her room for the whole time she'd been sleeping. _And he tried to wash my clothes, _she smiled at the sand, _that was really cute_.

He had been taking care of her all along and she had never noticed. Hawke felt her face flush. The snappy, sarcastic swordsman had somehow found his way into her heart; her dream was proof of that.

"I wonder where he is now?" she wondered aloud, looking out into the desert.

The she refocused her thoughts.

"It doesn't matter," she told herself, "As long as I can get to Crocodile, they'll come and get me. I know they will."

Finally, she looked up and took a breath, clearing her head.

"Well, I think I'm more embarrassed than anything," she said, "Going back there will be awkward."

_How will I be able to face Bran again?_ she thought.

Hawke stood up and unfurled her wings.

She took off and soared high up into the sky. Hovering in the air, she took in the view of her surroundings. The warm morning breeze blew through her hair. She breathed in deeply and calmed her thoughts.

The sun hadn't crept over the horizon yet, but there was enough light to see by.

To the south, east and west, there was nothing but endless sand dunes and small rocky outcrops.

Hawke looked to the north and squinted. She could see some figures on the horizon. They looked like spires and buildings.

"We must be almost there," she muttered.

Hawke judged the distance from their camp to the city.

"We should be there before nightfall," she decided.

Hawke took another deep breath to steady her nerves. Then she took off back to the camp.

She could see the two men sitting around the fire, they hadn't noticed her yet.

She descended and landed on one of the rocks at the edge of the camp.

"You're back," said Tank, hearing her touch down and turning.

"Yeah," said Hawke shyly, bringing her wings close around her body and playing with the tips of her feathers.

"Look I'm sorry about what happened," started Bran, standing up.

"No, it's fine," Hawke interrupted him, "Let's just forget about it."

Bran looked a little put out, but he nodded.

Hawke let her wings disappear.

"I'll start breakfast," she said and busied herself with the food preparations.

"Are you sure you're okay, Princess?" asked Tank quietly, coming over to sit beside her.

"Yes, I'm fine," said Hawke, focusing on chopping some onions.

"Don't mind Bran," continued Tank, "He feels as embarrassed as you, I'm sure."

"You think so?" asked Hawke, looking up.

"Definitely," said Tank, smiling, "He told me himself. He said he knows that you weren't thinking about him last night."

Hawke lowered her face.

"Are you crying again?" Tank asked, sounded worried.

"It's just the onions," muttered Hawke, wiping her eyes.

She cleared her throat.

"I saw a city on the horizon when I was flying," she said, looking at Tank, "Is that where Mister 0 is?"

"Yep, that's Rainbase," said Bran, coming over, "We should get there before dinner time."

Hawke let a small smile creep onto her face.

"Is food all you think about?" she glanced slyly at Bran.

He looked down, but he smiled and tugged at his bandana.

"I'm just meal oriented, that's all."

Hawke let out a real giggle this time.

"There's our Dark Angel," laughed Tank, "She's back again!"

Hawke smiled and went back to making omelets. They were soon cooked and Hawke dished out three portions.

"I have to say," said Tank as he ate his share, "I'm going to miss your cooking after today."

"Yeah," said Bran, looking a bit sad, "It'll be back to stew from now on."

Hawke put down her fork and looked at the two men.

"I'm a little scared," she said quietly.

"What?" said Tank, "Why?"

"I don't know what Mister 0 will do to me," Hawke shuddered, "What if he wants to torture me for information…"

The men looked at each other. They couldn't say what Mister 0 would do, but torture wasn't off the table.

"Don't worry," said Bran, faking a smile, "He probably just wants to keep you so that he can have something to bribe Strawhat with."

"Yeah," said Tank, but he looked uneasy too.

Hawke lowered her eyes and poked her omelet with her fork.

The two men exchanged looks.

They had grown quite attached to their captive. They were worried about what their boss might do to her.

"There's nothing we can do," whispered Tank, "We have to finish our mission. If we move quickly today, we'll make our deadline."

"But I don't want her to be tortured," Bran whispered back.

Hawke heard them muttering to each other.

"What are you guys talking about?" she asked.

"Umm," stuttered Bran.

"We were just saying that we have to finish our mission," said Tank, giving her a sorry look, "We're sorry, but we have our orders."

"It's okay," said Hawke, giving them a smile, "I actually want to get to Mister 0."

"What!?" exclaimed Bran, "Are you crazy?!"

"Why do you think I haven't run away?" asked Hawke, raising her eyebrow.

"I was wondering about that," said Tank.

"I could have escaped whenever I wanted too," continued Hawke, "But I need to be close to Mister 0 if I'm going to find my crew again."

"Huh," grunted Tank, "Well that's not the smartest thing to do."

Hawke shrugged.

"That reminds me," said Bran, "We're going to have to make you walk and cuff your hands again, just so we don't get in trouble."

Hawke nodded.

"I wouldn't want you guys to getting punished because of me," she smiled.

The two men looked at her.

"You really are something special," said Tank.

Bran nodded.

"A captive isn't supposed to care about her captors," he laughed.

"Well then the captors aren't supposed to free their captive and let her cook for them," countered Hawke, smiling.

They all laughed.

Then Tank grew serious.

"We better finish up here," he said, standing and collecting the plates, "We still have a ways to go."

Hawke stood up and held out her hands.

Bran approached with the handcuffs.

"Oh, wait," said Hawke and went over to Bran's sleeping bag, "I want to keep this on today," she said, putting on her leather jacket.

"Are you sure?" asked Tank, "Today's going to be hotter than usual."

"I want to have it on when we get to the city," said Hawke, holding out her wrists again.

"Alright, then," sighed Bran, putting the cuffs on her.

"Let's go," called Tank.

The three set off towards the spires in the distance.

The day _was_ a very hot one.

Hawke was panting before long and had to keep wiping sweat out of her eyes. But she kept going. She wanted to reach the city as soon as possible.

"Are you alright, sweet heart?" asked Tank quietly over his shoulder.

Hawke swallowed, trying to make her throat less dry.

"Yes," she croaked.

Tank gave her a look, but turned and kept walking.

Finally, the city was within view.

"Here, we are," said Tank over his shoulder, "Rainbase, Mister 0's headquarters."

Hawke looked ahead.

There was a giant pyramid in the center of the town with a huge crocodile statue on the top of it. As they entered the outlying buildings, Hawke figured that that's what they were heading for.

"Now," whispered Bran from behind her, "We'll have to tell the Boss or whoever comes to take you everything we know about you."

Hawke looked over her shoulder.

"Please don't tell them anything about this morning!" she whispered frantically.

Bran had a pained look on his face.

"Please," Hawke pleaded.

She was scared that they'd tell Crocodile that she liked Zoro and would use that against her. She knew she wouldn't be able to cope with that.

Bran looked at her. His shoulders drooped.

"Okay," he muttered, "It isn't really relevant anyways."

_Phew_, thought Hawke.

"Thank you," she whispered and faced forward again.

As Hawke was led along a side street, she noticed they were heading towards a small, rundown looking shop front.

There was a small booth on the right side of the boarded up doorway and a man waved them over to it.

"We're escorting this young lady to the casino," said Tank to the man in the booth.

Then he passed him a paper. The man read the paper and looked back up at the group.

"Miss All Sunday will receive the transfer," the man said quietly, "She is waiting in the central plaza."

Hawke felt her captors tense.

But they just nodded their heads and proceeded into the city.

"We'll get to see Miss All Sunday!" Bran whispered excitedly up to Tank.

"I know!" whispered Tank, "But shut up, anyone could be listening!"

Hawke wondered who this Miss All Sunday was.

They walked through the streets in silence.

The city around them, though, was thriving with people and animals. There were trading stalls, food stalls, clothing stalls.

Hawke looked at all the ones she passed by with wonder.

_This city is really wealthy_, she thought as she caught sight of a silk vender.

_Everything is so pretty,_ she looked up at the buildings.

They had reached a large open plaza.

Tank and Bran stopped, jerking Hawke a little because she hadn't been paying attention.

"There," said Tank quietly, tilting his head to one side.

Hawke and Bran followed his cue.

There was a tall woman with black hair leaning against the wall just inside an alleyway at the edge of the plaza. She was wearing a long white coat and a white cowboy hat.

"Miss All Sunday," whispered Bran.

Tank led the way over and into the alleyway.

Miss All Sunday didn't say anything. As they entered the alleyway, she turned ahead of them and walked further down the passage.

They continued to follow the agent until they reached a small wooden door hidden behind a pile of crates.

The mysterious woman knocked and it opened.

She gestured for them to take Hawke through.

Her captors started forward. Hawke entered a dimly lit passage. It branched in two directions, to the left and to the right.

"You two go to the right," Miss All Sunday said, gesturing down the path, "I will take the prisoner. You will give a report of all you have discovered. And good job on making your deadline."

Hawke looked at the two men.

Tank was looking uncertain, but he turned and started going down the right passage.

Bran looked back at Hawke.

"See ya, Dark Angel," he said quietly, before turning and following Tank.

Hawke watched them disappear into the darkness. She knew she wasn't safe anymore.

"Let's go," said Miss All Sunday sharply.

Hawke started down the left passageway.

It was lined with small torches, but was still not very bright.

Suddenly a door loomed out of the darkness ahead of her.

Miss All Sunday opened it and Hawke stepped through.

The room she entered had stone walls and no windows. There wasn't much furniture in it; just a desk with a comfortable looking chair and another, smaller wooden chair, placed facing the desk. The only light source was a dirty fire place with a small fire burning in its grate. There was a lamp on the desk, but it was unlit.

"Sit," ordered Miss All Sunday.

Hawke sat in the wooden chair. She faced the empty desk and shivered.

"There's no need to be afraid… yet," said Miss All Sunday.

Hawke wasn't sure if the woman was taunting her or comforting her.

She was standing beside the desk and was watching Hawke.

Hawke dropped her gaze and stared at the flagstone floor.

"That billion called you Dark Angel," Miss All Sunday suddenly broke the silence.

Hawke looked up.

"Is that your name?" she was asked.

Hawke shook her head.

"Well then why did he call you that?" asked Miss All Sunday.

"They made it up. I had nothing to do with it," was all Hawke said.

They sat in silence for a long while.

Hawke was dozing off, the heat had really gotten to her again, when the door suddenly opened. She jerked herself awake.

A slight smile crept onto Miss All Sunday's face.

Hawke looked to see who had entered the room.

A very large man stood in the doorway, his shoulders almost blocking out the light from the passage. He had a large, fur-lined, cloak on and was smoking a cigar. His face was shrouded in shadow.

"Mister 0," acknowledged Miss All Sunday.

_So that's Crocodile_, thought Hawke, still squinting to try and make out his face.

Mister 0 walked over and sat down at the desk.

He placed his left arm on the desk with a thump. Hawke's eyes widened. His hand was missing! In its place was a large golden hook.

"It's rude to stare," said Crocodile, sneering at her.

Hawke started and blushed.

"Sorry," she said quietly.

"Oh ho!" laughed Crocodile, "We have a polite prisoner."

Hawke looked up. The lamp on the desk had been lit, and she could see Crocodiles' features for the first time.

He had a large, square jaw. His dark hair was slicked back, showing a broad forehead. And he had a large scar that went from one cheek to the other, going over his nose.

"So," started Crocodile, "You must be the unnamed woman of the Strawhat pirates."

Hawke stared at him.

Miss All Sunday made a small movement, shifting the weight on her feet.

Hawke blinked.

"Um, I guess so," she said.

"Well you see, I'm inclined to believe you, but we don't have solid proof of what she looks like," said Crocodile

Hawke blinked again.

"The farthest record we have that may prove your honesty is when my underlings attempted to kill you on Whiskey Peak, they reported six crew members: four men and two women. One with orange hair, one with brown. And we have information of a woman sailing with the Straw Hats in the East Blue, although there was no proof that she was part of their crew," continued Crocodile, watching Hawke for her reaction.

Hawke sat back in her chair.

"But when we had that incident at Little Garden," said Crocodile, "There was a report saying that those numbers hadn't changed, except for the addition of a pet. This is strange because we know that Vivi had joined your crew by then. We are also able to identify every crew member except the missing woman and a missing man by the name of Mr. Prince."

He took out an envelope from his cloak and laid its contents on the desk.

They were pictures of her crewmates!

Hawke's eyes widened.

The photos showed Luffy, Nami, Zoro, and Usopp.

_Huh_, she thought, _where's Sanji and I?_ _And why are they all wearing the same weird outfit? Are those swans?!_

Crocodile watched her as she examine the photographs.

"You obviously recognize them," he said, picking them up and putting them back into the envelope.

He raised his hook and gestured to Miss All Sunday, who immediately left the room.

"We will confirm that you are a member of the Strawhat crew and then you shall be taken to a place where I can keep an eye on you," he said, casually leaning back and drawing a long breath on his cigar.

Hawke sat in silence, nervously rubbing her hands together. She could feel the man's eyes on her, his presence made her very uncomfortable.

Crocodile leaned forward again.

"What's your position?" he asked suddenly.

Hawke's head jerked up in surprise.

"Pardon?" she asked quietly.

"Your rank?" he asked again irritably, "Your role on the crew?"

"Oh," mumbled Hawke, "I'm the scout."

Crocodile didn't respond. He just grunted and sat back in his chair.

Just then, there was a knock at the door.

"Enter," said Crocodile, his eyes still on Hawke.

Miss All Sunday returned and was followed by another man, whom Hawke didn't recognize.

"You were present on Whiskey Peak when the attempt to capture the Straw Hats was made?" Crocodile asked, lazily.

"Yes, sir!" replied the man, looking straight ahead.

"Can you confirm that this woman was a part of their crew?" Crocodile pointed across to Hawke.

The man squinted at her.

"Come on," grunted Crocodile, moving the lamp so the light shone into her eyes, "Let the man see your pretty face."

Hawke raised her head.

"Yes," said the man finally, "She was with the Strawhats."

"Excellent," said Crocodile and he waved his hand.

Miss All Sunday nodded to the man and he left the room.

"Alright then, you are part of the Strawhats," said Crocodile, turning his attention back to Hawke, "I'm curious as to where you were during the Little Garden incident," he muttered, "But that's not of importance at the moment. The billions who caught you said that you have devil fruit powers from eating the Feather-Feather fruit."

Hawke nodded, she thought it best to keep up that lie.

"They say that you can grow wings and fly like a bird," confirmed Crocodile.

Hawke nodded again.

"And you call yourself Dark Angel?" he continued.

Hawke stiffened. She couldn't lie about this. She had already told Miss All Sunday, she needed to stay consistent.

She shook her head.

"Oh?" pushed Crocodile.

Hawke looked up.

"They made that name up for me," she said.

"So then what is your name?" asked Miss All Sunday.

Hawke shrunk again, she couldn't escape this time.

"Hawke," she mumbled.

"Dark Angel Hawke, the scout for the Strawhat pirates," said Crocodile, "That has a nice ring to it."

Hawke looked at the ground. _This guy is really strange_, she thought, _I don't like how he looks at me_.

"Well that's all that's necessary for now," said Crocodile, standing up, "Miss All Sunday, bring her to my conference room."

"Yes, sir," said the agent.

She went over to Hawke and motioned for her to stand.

Hawke stood. She was still facing Crocodile. He was watching her with an intense gaze. She blushed and turned her face towards the door.

Miss All Sunday tied a rope to Hawkes' handcuffs and led her towards the door. Crocodile got up and followed behind Hawke.

"You're a pretty thing for a pirate," he muttered into Hawke's ear.

A shiver went down her spine. _Why does everyone say that?!_ She thought, trying to walk closer to Miss All Sunday, _does Nami have to put up with this too?_

Hawke frowned. _Then again, Nami probably enjoys the attention_, she thought.

"Aren't you one of the Seven Warlords?" she asked, trying to divert his attention.

"Perceptive," said Crocodile sarcastically.

Hawke felt something tugging at her ponytail. She turned her head and saw the golden hook raised and being drawn through her hair.

She let out a frightened gasp and sped up, running into Miss All Sunday's back.

"Watch what you're doing," snapped the woman ahead of her without turning around.

"Don't worry about her," drawled Crocodile, "I was toying with my prisoner."

Hawke's back stiffened. _This man is dangerous_, she thought frantically, _I may have made a mistake in coming here willingly_.

Crocodile chuckled.

They reached the door and exited into the alleyway.

"Are you sure going out in public is safe?" asked Miss All Sunday.

"The people like me," said Crocodile, "If they get nosy I'll lie."

Hawke was led back out into the plaza.

"Hello, Sir Crocodile," said a man pulling a cart, "Nice day isn't it?"

"Yeah," grunted Crocodile.

"Good afternoon, Sir Crocodile," called an older woman from a stall.

Crocodile waved as more and more people greeted him. So far no one had noticed Hawke.

They were approaching a bridge. Hawke looked to the other side. There was the giant pyramid facing them with the huge crocodile sitting on the top.

"Go," said Crocodile, pushing Hawke forward.

"Who's that, Momma?" asked a little boy, pointing at Hawke, "She looks like she's in trouble."

"She is," said Crocodile, turning to the child, "I caught her trying to steal my wallet today. But she said she was sorry, so I'm taking her to my casino to be my maid instead of arresting her."

"How charitable," said the child's mother, pulling the boy away, smiling at Crocodile.

"She's a pretty one," said a man standing next to a stall, "You should make her a dancer, not a maid, Sir Crocodile."

Crocodile waved and moved on.

They left the crowd and crossed the bridge.

"Let's not go through the main casino," said Crocodile, "I'm tired of these fools."

They turned right at the main doors and entered a smaller door into a hallway.

Hawke was led down through a maze of corridors. They were all carpeted in red and looked the same.

I won't be able to escape like this, thought Hawke.

She was beginning to lose hope. How would Luffy find her here?

Hawke's spirit became lower and lower as she was led deeper and deeper into the depths of the casino.


	20. Chapter 20: Zoro's Thoughts

**Chapter 20**

**Zoro's Thoughts**

The crew had set up camp behind a larger than normal sand dune. Ace had just left them to continue with his man hunt.

It was well past midnight, but Zoro couldn't sleep.

He was sitting on the top edge of the dune. His eyes traced the path of his footprints back down to the fire pit.

He could see the rest of the crew huddled around the fire, piled onto each other trying to keep warm.

Zoro's eyes went back to the horizon.

Where was Hawke?

He had had a lot of time to reflect since she'd disappeared.

_She's definitely special_, he thought.

Zoro had barely noticed girls before. He would watch Sanji swoon over Nami, and every other girl he saw, and would wonder if there was something wrong with himself. Even Usopp would sneak an occasional glance towards Nami when she wore her bathing suit. But Zoro had never had the urge.

He had even considered the possibility of being homosexual, based on his feelings towards Luffy.

He had been very confused about himself. But then, out of nowhere, Hawke had dropped into the picture, literally.

She had been a shock to his senses. He felt like he hadn't been seeing or feeling properly before he met her.

She had helped him realize that he was not in love with Luffy. He was devoted to his captain, yes, but it was not a physical attraction, it was deep rooted loyalty.

_Maybe that's it…,_ Zoro thought as he sat in the cold.

He knew that Hawke understood that feeling. She felt the same way as he did towards Luffy.

But did she love the captain? _No_, he thought, _he's her brother, that's a different kind of love._

Zoro shivered, though not from the cold.

His body craved Hawke's touch; even her presence would be enough to make him feel better.

He thought back to when they crossed Reverse Mountain.

He had been standing behind Hawke, after she had escaped from that spy guy. When they had crossed over the top, he had seen that she still hadn't recovered her strength and was losing her grip. So he'd slipped his arm around Hawke's waist to keep her from flying off the ship again. That was the first time he had held a woman like that. It had felt so right, like she belonged right there, at his side, under his arm.

But she hadn't seen him and he had let go of her before the mist cleared. Zoro wondered what would have happened if he'd stayed there…

_She wouldn't have thanked that stupid cook,_ he seethed silently.

After they had made it over the peak of Reverse Mountain, Hawke had thanked Sanji. She seemed to think it had been him who saved her. Of course, the cook had accepted her thanks, completely clueless as to why she was thanking him.

_At least she didn't say why_, thought the swordsman, _that could have gotten awkward_.

He had been in a bad mood after that, berating himself for not telling her it had been him who'd saved her. But she had seemed to move on and forget about the event. So he had tried his best to move on too.

Zoro sighed.

…Or what if she had seen him as he watched her make her vow on the barrel?… What if she had woken up when he had stroked her hair? She had looked so beautiful. Laying there in her white dress, like an angel.

Zoro blushed at the sand. _Look at yourself_, he thought,_ you're showing too much emotion. The crew will notice, if they haven't already._

Zoro had tried hard not to act differently towards the other crew members. And to his credit, his attitude towards the others hadn't changed, even if his actions had given him away.

Hawke's presence hadn't changed his feelings towards Nami; she was still annoying and bossy.

And Zoro now understood where Luffy sat in his relationship circle. He could express his loyalty without fear or confusion anymore.

Sanji still pushed all of his buttons and he kept hitting on Hawke, even though Zoro had warned him to back off.

Zoro was sure that he treated Usopp the same way. And Chopper hadn't known them before Hawke.

Even towards Hawke, if they were in public, he would act relatively nonchalant, trying not to give her any special attention. Though he sometimes failed miserably at it.

_She does make me happy though_, thought Zoro smiling.

Her presence always made him feel good, more confident.

Now that she was missing, he had sunken into an unusually really grumpy mood.

_Although that might also be because of the heat_, he thought.

Zoro did want to go find Hawke. But he had to put his captain first. He knew that Hawke would be okay with Luffys' choice, and she probably expected it. And if she had figured out that she was being taken to Crocodile, hopefully she would realize that that was where the crew was headed and stay there.

But what really worried Zoro was the thought of Hawke being held prisoner and tortured.

Zoro clenched his hand around his swords.

"If anyone lays a hand on her, they will die!" he muttered to the sand.

Just then he heard movement in the camp.

"Oi, stupid swordsman," Sanji's voice called up the dune, "What are you doing up there?"

"None of your business, damn cook!" shouted Zoro.

He stood up and walked back down to the camp.

Sanji watched Zoro as he descended. When the two men stood facing each other, Sanji spoke.

"We're all worried about her, you know," he said, lifting his cigarette to his mouth.

Zoro stiffened.

"What are you talking about!" he growled at the cook.

"Shut up Zoro," groaned Nami from her bed by the fire, "And put some more logs on the fire, I'm freezing."

"Why do I have to do it?" muttered Zoro.

"I'll make you warmer Nami-chwan!" swooned Sanji and sped over to the wood pile.

Zoro glared at the camp in general and sat down by their packs.

_That stupid cook_, he thought as he closed his eyes, _what does he know about worrying_.


	21. Chapter 21: The Prophecy

**Chapter 21**

**The Prophecy**

Hawke adjusted her sitting position; her legs were falling asleep again.

She had been brought down a staircase into a large, sparsely decorated room. It had a blue tiled floor, a candelabrum on a long table with several comfortable looking chairs around it, and there were many large, floor-length windows on the walls.

The windows didn't give a view of the sky, however. They looked out into an underwater tank which was home to many huge banana crocodiles.

The animals were constantly circling in front of the room. Hawke thought it was because of her presence. She must be bait for them.

Crocodile had had her put in a large cage at the back of the room. It was made out of sea prism stone, so they had taken her handcuffs off. There was only a small bench to sit on and it wasn't the most comfortable thing.

Hawke really didn't like this room. She kept hearing whispers and she didn't know where they were coming from. They severely creeped her out.

She had been left to herself for many hours now. No one had come to check on her. She had been dozing on and off, but now she was wide awake and getting hungry.

Hawke got up and paced the length of her cage.

"What are these voices," she muttered, putting her hands over her ears, trying to block out the whispers.

Suddenly the whispers grew more intense.

Hawke groaned.

Just then, the doors at the top of the staircase opened.

Hawke looked up to see who had come in. The whispers became quiet again.

Miss All Sunday was descending the steps.

She came over to Hawkes cage and stood at the bars, watching her.

Hawke shuffled her feet uncomfortably.

"What do you want with me?" she asked.

"I don't have to tell you that," said Miss All Sunday.

Hawke crossed her arms and stood silent, returning Miss All Sunday's stare.

Several minutes passed in silence.

"Do you know of the prophecy?" Miss All Sunday asked suddenly.

Hawke blinked.

"What prophecy?" she returned.

Miss All Sunday looked at her sternly.

Then she turned and sat down in one of the chairs from the table, facing away from Hawke.

"I don't know of any prophecy," said Hawke again, coming up to the bars.

"Then it doesn't concern you," said Miss All Sunday suddenly, standing up again, "I was mistaken."

"Wait a minute!" exclaimed Hawke, grabbing onto the bars, "Tell me what you mean? What is this prophecy? Does it involve Luffy?" she stuck her arm through the bars and pointed her finger at the Baroque Works agent, "You better be careful if you mess with my captain!"

Miss All Sunday stared at her.

"You aren't fainting…" she said.

Hawke blinked.

"What?"

"You should be incredibly weakened by touching those bars," said Miss All Sunday, coming back to the cage.

Hawke gasped and stepped back, letting go of the bars.

The agent peered at her through the cage.

"You don't have devil fruit powers," she said, in a whisper.

Hawke stared at her.

_Damn_, she thought, _I forgot about the sea prism stone._

"Do you even have powers of flight?" asked Miss All Sunday, almost scathingly.

Hawke wasn't sure what she should do. What would happen to her if Crocodile found out the truth?

"Show me if you have these powers," ordered Miss All Sunday, "The billions said you could sprout wings from your back. I doubt they would lie about something like that."

Hawke took another step back.

_I should have been more careful with Tank and Bran_, she thought, _they did warn me they had to tell everything they knew about me._

Hawke let her shoulders fall, she had no other choice.

_Still…_, she thought, raising her head, she felt she could trust this woman. Hawke didn't know why, she just had a gut feeling.

She unfurled her wings. Their tips brushed against either end of the cage.

Miss All Sundays' eyes widened.

The whispers began again, very loudly this time.

Hawke pulled in her wings and fell to the ground, covering her ears.

"Please make them stop," she pleaded to Miss All Sunday, "I can't take it anymore!"

Miss All Sunday was staring at her.

"Why?" she said, "What's wrong?"

"You can't hear them?" asked Hawke, still trying to plug her ears.

"Hear what?" asked the woman.

"The whispers!" shouted Hawke, "Make them stop!"

"I don't hear anything," said Miss All Sunday.

But she was looking at Hawke like she understood something.

Miss All Sunday turned and looked out of the windows, watching the crocodiles circle.

She went over and drew curtains over the windows.

Hawke slowly withdrew her hands from her ears. The whispering quieted again.

"Nevermind," she said, "They're gone now."

"Yes they would be," said Miss All Sunday, "Fascinating."

"Pardon?" asked Hawke.

Miss All Sunday smiled.

"You are a polite prisoner."

Hawke became a little flustered at this comment.

"What's with you captors?" she muttered, "You always make fun of me."

Miss All Sunday let out a little laugh and started back up the staircase.

Hawke watched her go.

The woman stopped at the top of the stairs. She stood facing away from Hawke.

"From the East it will come, A dark angel to bring a long awaited peace, The history shall be revealed when black wings fly once more."

Hawke stood silent.

"That's the prophecy," said Miss All Sunday and she left.

Hawke stared at the place where Miss All Sunday had disappeared.

"What?!" she exclaimed, "Wait come back, what does that mean?!"

Hawke ran up to the bars.

"Come back!" she shouted.

Hawke strained against the bars.

_What did that mean?_ she thought.

Hawke gave up and went back to her bench.

"A dark angel from the east," she muttered, "That has nothing to do with Luffy. Does Miss All Sunday think that means me?!"

Hawke was from the East Blue and she did have black wings. But what was that part about history being revealed? Or the long awaited peace? And "Dark Angel" was a nick name; she hadn't even been the one who thought it up.

"Where did this prophecy even come from?" muttered Hawke, "It's probably only part of their plan," she decided.

Hawke crossed her arms and curled up on the floor in the corner of her cage. She sat listening to the whispers. They were faint, but still there.

She couldn't make out any words, however, and slowly fell asleep.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Many hours later, Crocodile and Miss All Sunday quietly entered the conference room and came up to the cage.

Hawke was lying on the floor in one corner, sleeping.

"So she doesn't have devil fruit powers?" asked Crocodile.

"No," said Miss All Sunday, "She sprouted wings inside the cage and didn't faint when she touched the bars."

"Hmmm," sighed Crocodile, "We seem to have stumbled upon a special little treasure, Miss All Sunday."

"She said she could hear whispering in this room," said Miss All Sunday, "It was quite distressing for her."

Crocodile turned his head towards the center of the room.

"I don't hear anything," he said.

"Neither do I," agreed Miss All Sunday, "But her reaction was quite real."

"Why are the curtains drawn?" asked Crocodile, going over and pulling them back.

The banana crocodiles swam up and looked in through the glass, pushing each other out of the way in the process.

"I haven't seen them this excited in a while," muttered Crocodile.

Hawke woke up with a start.

"I can hear you!" she shouted, sitting up quickly, "Just be quiet!"

"What's going on?" said Crocodile, walking back over to the cage.

Hawke was kneeling on the floor with her hands over her ears, letting out little whimpers.

"It would seem that she can hear the voices again," said Miss All Sunday.

"Yeah," said Crocodile.

He stood in front of the cage.

"Hey, Dark Angel Hawke," he called.

Hawke looked up and moved her hands away from her ears a little.

"What are you hearing?" Crocodile asked, "I can't hear anything."

"There are so many voices," said Hawke, distractedly, "I can't hear what they're saying, but they keep whispering and won't stop."

"Is it some sort of Haki?" asked Miss All Sunday.

"It could be," said Crocodile, scratching his chin, "But there aren't any people close enough for her to hear."

Miss All Sunday looked back at the crocodiles floating outside the windows.

"Well whatever it is," she said, "It will drive our captive to the brink if it goes on like this."

"We can't fix it if we don't know what it is," muttered Crocodile, "We'll leave her for now. Maybe it'll go away by itself. We can't have her like this for the meeting."

Miss All Sunday nodded.

Crocodile started to make his way back up the stairs.

"Stay here and make sure she doesn't go insane," he said over his shoulder to Miss All Sunday, "I have to go prepare something before the others are let in."

The woman sat down at the table.

Crocodile left, closing the doors behind him with a bang.

Hawke was still kneeling on the floor of her cage.

Miss All Sunday looked at her.

"Did you understand the prophecy?" she asked, getting up and closing the curtains again.

Hawke lowered her hands and shakily stood up.

She went over to the bars and clung to them for support.

"What does it mean?" Hawke asked weakly, "Surely you can't think that it means me?"

Miss All Sunday walked over to the cage. She held out a small plate of food.

"Here, you must be hungry," she said.

Hawke took the plate, but continued to keep her eyes on Miss All Sunday.

"Thank you," she said.

Miss All Sunday returned to her seat at the table.

"Before going any further," said Miss All Sunday, "I would like you to keep this information between us."

She fixed Hawke with her stare.

Hawke blinked and nodded.

"I have a condition too," she said suddenly, a thought popping into her brain.

Miss All Sunday looked surprised, but nodded her head.

"Tell me your real name," said Hawke, "Then I'll listen to you."

Miss All Sunday looked taken aback.

"You all have fake names in Baroque Works," continued Hawke, "I want to know your real name."

Miss All Sunday smiled and nodded.

"Very well," she said, "My name is Nico Robin."

Hawke gasped.

"You're _Nico Robin_?!" she exclaimed, almost dropping her food, "The only survivor of O'Hara?"

Robin blinked.

"I'm surprised you know who I am," she said.

"I spent some time at a marine base," said Hawke, looking at the woman in front of her in wonder.

The marines had only told her how terrible Nico Robin was and that she was a devil child that planned to destroy the world. But Hawke had always felt that there was more to the story than that. Robin had only been eight years old when they had put a bounty on her head. Hawke knew that the navy kept its secrets and wasn't altogether righteous sometimes.

"Alright then, Nico Robin," she said, smiling, "I've decided I like you."

The agent laughed.

"Just Robin please," she said, "And you should be a little more careful before you trust someone."

"My intuition has worked out for me so far," said Hawke, finishing her meal.

She stood up and gave Robin a small bow.

"Thank you for the food, I was really hungry," she said.

"My, my," said Robin, "So polite."

Hawke blushed and sat back down.

"What was that meeting Crocodile was talking about?" she asked.

"The top members of Baroque Works are gathering here for their final briefing," said Robin.

Hawke swallowed.

"And why was I kidnapped?"

"You are to act as bait to draw Strawhat here," answered Robin, "As soon as we learned of Mister 3's failure, this plan was devised."

Hawke looked at her hands.

_At least they don't know Luffy's coming here anyways_, she thought, _they don't know how much we already know about Crocodile's plan._

Hawke played with her jacket cuff.

"Now, about the prophecy," said Nico Robin, "You probably assume that it's a fake."

Hawke looked up. Yes, she did, but she decided to admit this tactfully.

"It's the first I've heard of it," she said, "I have no basis to form any opinion on it."

"Well it is a real prophecy," said Robin, seeing through her politeness, "And it's an ancient one."

Hawke's eyes widened.

"I enjoy studying history," continued Robin, "And this prophecy has been recorded in many texts throughout the last eight hundred years."

"So what does it mean?" asked Hawke, "In the prophecy, when it talked about revealing history?"

Robin paused.

"Before I tell you that, I will give you my opinion," she said finally.

"Your opinion?" asked Hawke.

"Yes," said Robin, "I believe that you are the subject the prophecy is referring to. You are the Dark Angel."

Hawke blinked; she still wasn't convinced.

"And what if I am the Dark Angel?" she asked.

"Then you will be hunted down and killed by the government," was the answer.

Hawke let out a little gasp.

"Why would the government want to kill me?" she asked, wide-eyed.

"Because the prophecy declares that when the Dark Angel appears, the true history will be revealed," said Robin.

"Is it referring to the Blank Century?" asked Hawke, still skeptical.

"Yes," said Robin excitedly, leaning forward in her chair, "I believe it is."

"Why would the government not want to find out what happened in the blank century? And why would the government act on a prophecy? Shouldn't there be more proof than that?" asked Hawke, becoming uneasy.

"Because," said Robin sullenly, "They are the ones who hid the events of those one hundred years from history. They cannot afford any risk to this knowledge coming to light and smother _any_ rumours relating to it."

Hawke couldn't believe her ears.

"What?!" she exclaimed, "What could be so bad that the government erased a hundred years of history?!"

"That's what I want to find out," said Robin.

Hawke searched Robin's face through the bars. She felt that this woman was telling the truth. But it was just so shocking that is was hard for Hawke to understand.

"I need to think about this," she said.

Robin nodded.

"It is a lot to take in," she said as she got up.

"And about those voices you hear…" continued Robin, walking over to the curtains, "I think you are hearing them."

She drew back the curtains again and the banana crocodiles swarmed up to the glass.

Hawke's head started ringing with whispers again.

She cried out and covered her ears.

"Don't ignore it," said Robin, "Try to listen to them."

Hawke stared at the crocodiles pressing themselves up to the glass. She slowly lowered her hands.

A flood of voices bombarded Hawke's ears.

"No, they're too loud," she whimpered.

Suddenly, the crocodiles quieted down and slowed their movements. The voices became softer and Hawke could hear fewer of them.

_Can they hear me?_ she thought.

"It's the princess…"

"She must not stay here…"

"Fly away Princess, fly…"

"You are not safe with our master…"

Hawke gazed at the crocodiles, her mouth hanging open.

"It was you?!" she gasped.

The crocodile that was closest to the glass swam up and pressed the side of its face against the window.

"She can hear us!" it said.

The other crocodiles circled the window and looked into the room.

"Princess, you must escape," said one of them.

"Our master cannot be trusted," said another.

"He will never let you go free," said the first one, "You must fly, Princess."

"I can't," said Hawke, clenching the bars, "I'm trapped, I can't escape!"

"You must find a way to get away from this place, Princess," said one crocodile with a scar along its snout.

Hawke looked at them through the bars and sighed.

"Why are you calling me that?" she asked.

The crocodiles started to stir.

"The master is calling us!" said the first crocodile and swam away, quickly followed by the others.

"Wait," called Hawke, but they were already gone.

Hawke gazed into the now empty water outside the window.

"It was the crocodiles?" she whispered, "How am I able to hear them?"

Then it clicked.

"Oh, how stupid!" Hawke berated herself and hit herself lightly on the head.

"What is it?" asked Robin, who had been watching the entire episode.

"They are reptiles," said Hawke, smiling, "Reptiles are very closely related to birds."

"So you can understand animals then?" said Robin.

"Only birds, or so I thought," said Hawke, still looking into the water, "I can't believe I didn't figure it out before."

"Is there anything else you are capable of?" asked Robin.

Hawke looked over at her.

"I like you Robin," she said, "But I can't trust you yet. After all, you work for Crocodile."

Robin smiled.

"You aren't as gullible as you let on," she said.

But then their conversation was cut short.

The doors opened and a group of people entered the room.


	22. Chapter 22: The Evenings Entertainment

**Chapter 22**

**The Evenings Entertainment: Hawke's Escape Attempt**

The group of six people came down the stairs and went over to the long table.

Robin had been sitting in her spot, but she got up and went over to the base of the staircase.

"Thank you for coming," she said "I'm glad you all could make it here; to the city where people dream of obtaining an instant fortune through gambling, the city of dreams, Rainbase. And to the largest casino in this city, Rain Dinners, I welcome you."

"Skip the formalities and get to the point, Miss All Sunday," said a large man with dark skin and a long cloak with no shirt underneath, taking his seat at the table.

"Mister 1," acknowledged Robin.

"Just how long is he going to make us wait?!" exclaimed a man in a very strange costume, banging his fists on the table.

From the look of his makeup, Hawke assumed he was an okama.

The next people to take their seats were a woman wearing an extremely revealing leather outfit and another woman with purple hair and an orange dress.

"Will you be quiet, Mister 2," said the woman in the leather outfit.

"Yeah! Baka! Ba-! Ba-!" shouted an older lady with a pointy, oddly shaped nose, who was also banging her fist on the table.

"You too, Miss Merry Christmas," muttered the woman in leather.

A very large man with blonde hair and scarf around his neck sat down and start laughing.

Hawke analyzed everyone as they took their seat at the table.

_But who's that woman with the purple hair_? She thought,_ Is she Mister 1 or 2's partner? The fat man must be Mr. 4… since Mr. 3 isn't here? And what about the woman in the leather?_

None of the new guests had noticed Hawke yet. She was sitting quietly, far back in her cage.

"I will continue with the briefing," said Miss All Sunday, standing at the head of the table, "But before I do, let me introduce you to the Boss of our organization, whose face you have yet to see. Until now I have acted as his representative and relayed his orders to you, but there is no longer a need for that."

"The time has come," a deep voice suddenly rang out, Hawke shivered, "For Operation Utopia."

All the members at the table turned and looked towards the staircase, where Crocodile had just entered.

"What?!" they all gasped in unison when they recognized their previously unknown leader.

"As expected," chuckled Miss All Sunday, "You seem to know him; his public face at least."

"Now, before we get down to business," drawled Crocodile, descending the steps, "Permit me to keep our goal between us."

Everyone looked at him questionably.

Suddenly Hawke felt something touch her arm.

She looked down and gave a loud shriek.

There was a hand gripping her. Only a hand, with no body attached to it! Hawke flailed her arm wildly, trying to shake off the hands grasp.

"Who's that?" asked the woman with the purple hair.

Crocodile had made it to the base of the stairs and walked over to the cage.

"No one you need to know about for the moment, Miss Hallows Eve," grunted Crocodile, "A prisoner of mine whom I do not want to know the details of my plan."

He looked through the bars at Hawke. She had stopped flailing and was holding her arm out, trying to get the hand as far from her body as she could.

Crocodile let out a chuckle.

Hawke watched as the hand dissolved into sand and then flew through the bars to his outstretched arm, reassembling into his hand again.

"What?!" gasped Hawke.

_He's made of sand?!_ She thought.

"I'm sorry, Angel," he said, reaching into his cloak and taking out a syringe, "But you're going to have to take a short nap."

He shot out his hand again, grabbing Hawke's arm and dragging her across the cage, pressing her up against the bars in front of him.

Hawke struggled frantically, trying to push herself away.

"No, don't!" she whimpered as she felt a prick on her shoulder.

"Just relax," he muttered, "This will only put you to sleep for a few hours. There's no need to struggle, you're just drawing unwanted attention."

Hawke felt her legs weakening. Her vision was starting to blur. She tried to focus on Crocodile. He was watching her face. She struggled to focus her eyes. _Why is he looking at me like that?_ she thought, _is he pitying me?_

Darkness started to frame her vision.

"No," she whispered weakly, as her legs gave out.

Crocodile, his hand still holding onto her arm, lowered her gently to the ground.

"Have a good rest," she heard Crocodile say.

Then she saw his feet turn and start to walk away.

"Wait…" she tried to mumble, but the effort pushed her over the brink and she fell into darkness.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Hawke felt herself being pulled out of her warm blanket of sleep.

She could hear a muffled voice in the distance.

_No_, she thought, _I don't want to wake up yet._

She tried to roll over, but her whole body felt like a lead pipe.

The voice became louder and was joined by another, deeper voice.

_Someone's arguing_, Hawke tried to clear her clouded mind. She remembered where she was, but other than that, her memories were a little fuzzy.

Hawke lay there, listening as the voices slowly became clearer.

"I will finish off Vivi and that pirate crew without fail if you give me—"

"Silence you useless little shit!" she heard the deep voice snarl, "I have already been informed of your failure and have taken precautions. Mister 3! Do you know why I gave you that title?!"

Hawke heard sounds of someone gasping and struggling. _What's happening?_ she thought, trying to get her eyelids to obey her.

"In terms of combat ability, you are inferior to Mister 4," the deep voice continued, "I believed you had the tenacity to carry out your orders, no matter what underhanded means were necessary! And I am very disappointed."

There were gasps and exclamations of horror

_It must be Crocodile who's speaking_, thought Hawke, finally recognizing the deep voice.

She could feel her eyelids becoming lighter as she tried to open them.

"W-water," she heard a weak gasp, "Water!"

"Drink all the water you want," sneered Crocodile.

There was a soft click and then a yell, followed by silence.

"It's feeding time," Crocodile muttered, "That greedy ghoul had it coming."

There was a tense silence.

"So is that why you have a hostage?" asked a woman's voice, "But she doesn't look like any of the people identified in the pictures."

_That sounded like that Miss Hallows Eve lady_, thought Hawke.

She finally managed to open her eyes a crack. But the brightness of the room seared her vision, making her eyes water immediately.

There was a pause.

"Yes, I didn't see her when I was aboard their ship," a new man's voice said.

_Wait_, thought Hawke, _he sounds like that okama man, Mister 2._

Her vision adjusted to the light and focused a little and she began to take in her surroundings. She was still lying on the floor near the door of the cage, in full view of all the agents.

_I need to get up_, she thought, trying to move her legs.

But her body wasn't responding to her.

_Come on,_ she thought, concentrating on trying to wiggle her fingers and toes. After a few moment of nothing, her fingers began bending at her will.

_That's more like it_, she thought and continued waking up the rest of her body.

"It has been proven that she was present at Whiskey Peak and was acting as part of their crew. Even if she's not, that is of no importance, as long as she has some connection with them, which has been proven. She is to act as bait to lure the pirates here, where they will be disposed of," Crocodile drew a long breath on his cigar.

Hawke shivered.

_Get a grip_, she told herself, _you need to snap out of this right now_!

Hawke willed her arms to move and pushed herself up into a sitting position.

"What's this?" noted Miss Hallows Eve, "Your hostage is awake."

She had caught sight of Hawke's movement.

Crocodile laughed and turned around.

"Yes, I think it's about time for some introductions. This is the Strawhat's scout," he said, "Stand up so I can show you off, Angel."

Hawke shivered again, but she pulled herself up, clinging to the bars. Her vision spun and it was all she could do to stay standing.

_What kind of drug did he use on me?_ she thought.

"She's pretty fragile looking," said Mister 1, he sounded unconvinced.

Hawke was still clinging to the bars, trying to get her legs to stand on their own.

Crocodile grunted, but didn't reply.

He turned to address the rest of the table.

"Now the final order of business: these letters detail your final missions. When you complete these tasks, we will be in position to launch our final plans and create our Utopia."

The agents each had closed envelopes placed on the table in front of them. While Crocodile was speaking, they each opened and read their instructions and then proceeded to burn the letters over the candelabrum in the center of the table.

"Excellent," said Crocodile in a smooth voice, "Now, since you are in the wealthiest establishment of this city, I thought it would be only fitting if a party was held in honour of this occasion."

He raised his hand and gestured towards the staircase.

The doors opened and a line of waiters appeared bringing trays of food and drink.

"Well isn't this a nice surprise," said the woman with purple hair, looking at Crocodile, "What are you playing at?"

"Well, Miss Hallows Eve, today we have a special guest," said Crocodile and he left the table and approached Hawke's cage, "I think we could use some entertainment."

He withdrew a package from his cloak and pushed it through the bars.

"Put this on," he muttered and then returned to the table.

Hawke shook her head, clearing the last of the haziness from her body.

The package fell to the floor. She shakily picked it up and opened it.

Her eyes widened as she saw its contents and she looked back to Crocodile.

"Go ahead," he said, gesturing to the far corner of the cage, "Isn't it pretty?"

Hawke backed into the corner and kneeled down. She held up the contents of the package.

It seemed that Crocodile had taken the man outside the casino's advice.

Inside the package was a black dancer's outfit, lined with gold sequins and silver tassels.

She lowered the clothes and stared uncertainly out at the table.

The Baroques Works members had already begun eating and were no longer paying any attention to her. Except for Crocodile, that is. She saw him glancing periodically in her direction.

"Come on, Hawke," he called over the noise the rest of the people were making, "I'm not the kind of man you want to disappoint."

Hawke shuddered. She knew he was being serious, despite his smile.

She squeezed as far back into the shadows as she could and began changing.

_How can this be happening?_ she thought, horrified at herself, _why am I doing this? Why am I doing what he says?_

But it was as if her body had a mind of its own; it wouldn't listen to her brain telling it to stop.

_Maybe the drug he gave me is still having an effect,_ she thought.

Hawke managed to change quickly and without drawing any unwanted attention. Crocodile was preoccupied with his company.

She folded up her clothes and put them under the small bench. Then she sat down on the bench and waited.

_How can this be happening again?_ she thought, looking out at the rowdy group.

More people had joined the party, coming down the stairs and joining in the feast._ They're probably the millions he mentioned earlier,_ thought Hawke.

The room was quickly turned into a raucous party, with music blaring, more people joining by then minute, and barrels of sake being brought in at regular intervals.

Hawke looked down at her hands. She was being made to dance for entertainment again, just like when she was on that pirate ship. She had thought that she would never be brought down this low again.

Hawke watched Crocodile through the bars. The crocodiles in the aquarium had told her she was not safe with him, that he wasn't going to let her go free. She shivered again; she hoped that Luffy and the others would get here soon.

The dinner had been underway for hours before Crocodile finally brought his attention back to Hawke.

"Good, you've changed," he said, getting up and coming over to the cage.

He unlocked the door and entered.

As he approached her, Hawke could see a faint flushing on his cheeks.

_He's drunk_, she thought, _this isn't good._

"You should come dance for us, Angel," he said and grabbed her arm, dragging her out of her cage.

"Won't she escape like that?" asked Mister 2.

Crocodile took a chain and a ring-like object out of his pocket.

"No!" cried Hawke, as she realized what the ring was. A collar.

Crocodile laughed menacingly and clamped the collar around her neck, attaching the chain to it.

"That'll do it," muttered Mister 1.

Hawke stood, mortified. She was being treated as a pet?!

Crocodile shoved Hawke out into an empty space on the floor.

"Now dance," he said.

"Yeah!" cried the crowd of millions. And they all gathered around, eagerly awaiting the spectacle.

Hawke stood resolute and shook her head.

"Don't defy me, little girl," he snarled and turned his hand into sand.

He formed the sand into a whip and struck Hawke across her chest.

She cried out in pain and bent over.

"That stings, doesn't it?" sneered Crocodile, "You don't want that to repeat itself, do you?"

Hawke straightened up and shook her head again.

She would not be someone else's plaything, not again!

Crocodile hit Hawke again and again, this time aiming at her legs. The strokes left large red welts on her skin.

"Let her know her place, Boss!" shouted a million from the back of the room.

"Don't spoil my appetite," Robin snapped in Crocodile's direction.

"I wouldn't have to if this little imp did as she was told," said Crocodile and he jerked the chain.

This caused Hawke to be thrown forward. She fell onto the ground at Crocodile's feet.

"Look at you," he said, staring down at her, his eyes shining, "You look so nice down there, in your little dress, kneeling at my feet."

The millions in the room jeered and made cat calls.

Hawke staggered up, choking, and backed away. Her heart was beating out of her chest. She was so scared she could barely move. She just wanted to escape this place.

"I didn't say you could go," snapped Crocodile, pulling on the chain again.

Hawke stepped closer.

"That's it," he said, "Now dance for this fine company," he gestured to the table.

Hawke looked at the other guests.

Mister 2 was looking at her with a pained expression on his face, it reminded her of Bran.

Miss Hallows Eve was watching Crocodile with gleaming eyes.

Mister 1 and Miss All Sunday were staring at her coldly. Hawke couldn't read either of their faces.

Miss Merry Christmas and Mister 4 were staring at her blankly.

Then her gaze drifted to the many other men and women filling the room behind the table. They were all drinking and laughing at her.

"Come on," goaded Crocodile, hitting the floor at her feet with his sand whip, "Dance for us."

Hawke's eyes watered and her chest and legs stung. She knew that the only way she could avoid pain was to dance, but she didn't want to feel like an object again.

She didn't know what to do. Then she saw a small movement out of the corner of her eye. It was Robin.

Miss All Sunday was looking at her intently. She raised her hand to the brim of her hat, hiding her face from the agents at the table.

Hawke watched as the Baroque Works agent moved her lips almost imperceptibly.

"For me," Robin mouthed, "A friend."

Hawke's eyes widened and she stared.

"What are you looking at?" asked Crocodile, turning around.

Seeing Robin, Crocodile smiled.

"Is she bothering you, Miss All Sunday?" he asked.

"No," said Robin, coldly.

As Crocodile turned around again, her gaze returned to Hawke's.

Hawke blinked and she understood.

Robin wanted her to dance. Not as a slave for entertainment, but as a friend showing off. She didn't seem to want Hawke to get hurt and she was offering a way out. Hawke knew that she had been right in trusting Robin.

_Still, this will be a difficult frame of mind to keep up,_ she thought, glancing at the crowd around her.

Hawke looked down at her feet, then up at Crocodile. She would get this over with as fast as she could. _I'm doing this for Robin_, she repeated to herself, _I'm not being forced into it…_

"Come to a decision have we?" he laughed at her.

Hawke nodded and held up her arms, steeling her nerves and glancing at Robin.

"I'll need music," she said quietly.

Crocodile eagerly waved his hook and the blaring music changed to a medium paced dance beat.

The crowd cheered.

The look on Crocodile's face frightened Hawke. He was looking at her with greedy eyes. It made her feel like she was something that he wanted to collect.

Hawke let the music play for a few bars, then her hips began to sway.

She tried to keep her eyes on Robin, but the expressions on the men's faces quickly got harder to ignore. Hawke could feel her face start to flush. She stumbled and tried to quell to mounting feeling of mortification rising in her chest.

"Keep going!" shouted a man and threw his mug at her.

It hit one of Hawke's outstretched arms and caused her to stumble again. But she kept dancing. She kept her hips swaying and brought her arms back up, waving and bending them in time with the music.

She started moving her feet. Twirling and moving across the floor in front of Crocodile as far as her chain would let her.

_Just get it over with_, she kept repeating in her head, _you're showing off to Robin, remember. Dance for your friend, like on the marine ship._

Hawke knew she was a good dancer. She had had many years to develop her skills in this area. She knew what to do and how to move to make sure her audience was entertained.

The crowd's tone gradually changed. Instead of hearing jeers and taunts, Hawke started receiving actual applause and whistles. This gave her a little bit of confidence.

She slowly made her way closer to Crocodile, keeping her steps in time with the music. He was watching her with wide eyes, his mouth slightly open. Hawke felt a sudden urge to run as far away from this place as she could. She quickly glanced at Robin to keep her focus.

Robin met her gaze. Hawke felt her will steady again. She took a breath and stepped closer to Crocodile. Hawke was now standing in the space between Crocodiles spread legs. She turned her back to him and raised her arms above her head, showing off her figure.

"You're a pretty thing…" he said, breathing in shakily.

Hawke felt his fingers tracing her tattoo down her back. She willed herself not to shudder and continued to dance. She moved away from Crocodile and started to circle his chair.

While she was doing this, she took the opportunity to look at the other Baroques Works members.

The men were watching her. Mister 1's eyes were fixed on her hips, moving back and forth with her movement. Mister 2 was watching her with an expression of mixed amusement and pity, craning his neck. _He must be trying to see my tattoo,_ she thought. Mister 4 was staring at her, but he didn't seem to be registering what was going on, he was just laughing slowly and pulling on his scarf.

Miss Hallows Eve still had her eyes on Crocodile. But her expression had changed. She looked troubled or confused. As Hawke was making her way around the chair, her eyes met Miss Hallows Eve's. The agent glared at her, hatred clearly showing in her eyes. Hawke was a little taken aback by this. Then she saw Miss Hallows Eve's eyes go back to Crocodile, a frown on her face.

_Maybe she likes Crocodile_, thought Hawke, coming around the other side of the chair.

The other woman, dressed in leather, had gotten up and was flirting with some millions off to one side and Miss Merry Christmas was banging her fist on the table and complaining about everything and everyone.

Hawke faced Crocodile again and looked over his head at Robin, trying to keep up her confidence.

She turned her attention to the music. It was in the midst of a grand finale.

She quickened her steps. Weaving her hands and hips, twirling around, she made the tassels on her dress fly out and the sequins sparkle.

As the music reached its crescendo, Hawke fell to her knees at Crocodiles feet, holding out her arms towards him.

_There,_ she thought, _it's done. It's over._

The room was silent for a few seconds.

Then is bursting into applause.

"Encore!" the millions were shouting.

"That was quite the performance," said Mister 1, "Are you sure she's the Strawhats' scout? We should keep her."

Crocodile grunted, his eyes still on the kneeling girl in front of him.

Hawke raised her head and looked tentatively at the Warlord, hoping that she had done enough and that he would take this humiliating collar and chain off her.

He was watching her with a strange expression on his face. He looked like he was caught between happiness and shock and had a faraway look in his eyes.

_Well that's weird_, Hawke thought nervously, _what is he thinking?_

Suddenly, a group of millions ran by with a huge plate of food. As they ran behind Hawke, the man in front tripped and the rest of the group fell on top of him. Food spilled everywhere.

This seemed to snap Crocodile out of his thoughts. He got up and pulled on the chain, more gently this time, bringing Hawke to a standing position.

"Clean this up!" he snapped at the millions, suddenly serious, "It's time we got back to business."

The room quieted quickly at his change in tone.

Crocodile jerked the chain and led Hawke back into her cage.

The people hurried about, cleaning up the mess and removing the plates of food.

"You stay here and keep quiet. I'll call on you again later," he muttered.

He removed the collar around her neck, looked her up and down, then left and locked the cage again.

Hawke shivered and ran back to the farthest corner of the cage, grabbing her clothes from under the bench.

"Don't change," snapped Crocodile, sitting back in his chair.

Hawke put down her clothes again. She hesitated, then picked up her jacket and put it on to cover herself a little. _Why does he want me to stay in this dress_? she thought, not wanting to believe the obvious reason.

Crocodile frowned but he didn't say anything. He turned and addressed the people at the table.

"We know that Straw Hat Luffy and his crew are helping Vivi in trying to reach the rebel city and may in fact be on their way here. Your job is to make sure they do not meet the rebel leader at any cost. Bring them to me!"

He stood up. The other agents rose with him.

"Go," ordered Crocodile and the group headed for the door.

Hawke watched as the agents left the room, followed by the millions. Only Miss All Sunday and Crocodile remained.

"That takes care of that," said Crocodile, sitting down again.

"It would seem so," said Miss All Sunday, "But you cut their party short."

"You should go see them out," muttered Crocodile, ignoring her comment and lighting another cigar, "I don't want any of them sneaking around this place."

"Yes, sir," said Miss All Sunday and she made her way out of the room.

Crocodile sat at the table, puffing on his cigar.

"That was quite the performance, Angel," he said, glancing at Hawke through the bars.

She shivered and pulled her knees up to her chest.

"Now, don't be shy," he said, standing up, "You are very talented."

_Just like her,_ he thought, approaching the bars.

"Why don't you take off that jacket and give me another, private, performance," Crocodile said slyly, watching Hawke.

She looked up at him. Seeing he was still drunk, she then looked quickly down to her feet again.

_He's just like that pirate captain,_ she thought, her memories flooding back to her. When she had been chained to the mast and was only kept from being assaulted by the first mate. And even then, he hadn't been there all of the time. _This is just like before_…, her body started shaking all over.

"What's wrong?" asked Crocodile sharply, "Are you sick?"

He unlocked the cage and came in.

Hawke stayed where she sat, too petrified to move.

_No,_ she wanted to scream, _stay away from me! _She reached her hand inside her jacket.

Crocodile was almost close enough to grab Hawke. He reached out his hand to take her arm.

"Not again!" Hawke screamed.

She whipped out a knife and sliced at the hand that was extending towards her.

"What the-?!" Crocodile shouted and pulled back his hand, looking at the blood that was beginning to pool at the cut.

Hawke dodged Crocodiles attempt to grab her with his hook and ran out the open cage door, slamming it behind her.

_That should keep him busy for a while_, she thought as she ran up the steps, _I'm getting out of this horrible place!_

"Miss All Sunday!" yelled Crocodile.

Hawke was almost at the top of the steps when Robin came running back into the room. The agent stopped and quickly took in the situation.

"Grab the girl!" shouted Crocodile from the cage.

He was fumbling with the key in the lock.

Hawke hadn't stopped running when Robin had entered and was about to make a dash past her.

"Move!" Hawke shouted, holding her weapon out threateningly.

Miss All Sunday moved out of the way of Hawke's flailing knife.

"What are you doing?!" shouted Crocodile, "Catch her, now!"

Hawke had almost reached the doors. She stretched out her hand. _Almost there,_ she thought.

Just then she felt her legs jerk together, causing her to fall to the ground.

"What?" she gasped, looking down.

An arm had sprouted out of her ankle and wrapped itself around her legs, keeping them pinned together.

"What's happening?!" she gasped again.

Then she raised her eyes and saw Robin standing there, her arms crossed over her chest.

"Forgive me," she heard Miss All Sunday's barely audible whisper.

Hawke blinked. Robin must have devil fruit powers! She could make her arms sprout out of things.

_I wonder if she can sprout other body parts_? thought Hawke and then shook her head, _but I can't think about that now._ She quickly hid the knife in her wings, using her jacket as a cover.

_I won't let them take my knives away_, she thought.

She lowered her head, bringing her hand back out and placing it on the ground. She hadn't been able to escape. Now she would be tortured for sure. Her body curled up at the thought of the punishment she would now surely receive.

Crocodile had finally gotten himself out of the cage and was storming up the steps.

"Did you really think you could escape?" he seethed at her, his voice deadly calm, "Even if you had gotten out these doors, there are six more top Baroques Works agents just outside who would have no trouble taking you out."

Hawke stared at the floor. He was right. She would have just been caught by the other agents. And they might not have been as gentle as Robin had been in catching her.

Crocodile picked her up roughly by her jacket collar.

"You try to pull another stunt like this and I won't be as gentle with you," he whispered threateningly into her ear.

Hawke whimpered and clutched at the hand holding her up.

"I'm sorry," she said in a weak, trembling voice.

Crocodile smiled menacingly and carried her back down the stairs by her collar. He ripped her jacket off her before throwing her into the cage and locking the door.

Hawke stared up at him, fear clearly showing in her eyes.

Crocodile sneered down at her and drew a long breath on his cigar, blowing the smoke into Hawke's face.

"You're mine now."


	23. Chapter 23: An Unforseen Connection

**Chapter 23**

**An Unforeseen Connection**

Hawke curled into a ball on the floor of the cage.

Crocodile turned and addressed Miss All Sunday, who was still at the top of the stairs.

"I would have thought you'd be faster in catching an escapee," he snapped.

"She was brandishing a knife," said Miss All Sunday quietly.

Crocodile turned his attention back to Hawke's jacket, still hanging from his hook. He turned it inside out and shook it.

Nothing fell out.

"Where did that knife come from, Angel?" he moved over to the cage and looked threateningly down at Hawke.

She sat up and faced him.

"I threw it away," she stated, her voice still shaking.

She heard movement on the stairs.

"There's no knife up here," Miss All Sunday called down.

Crocodile eye's searched Hawke. She could tell he was angry, but curious.

"Where did that knife come from, Hawke?" he asked again, his voice deepening.

The scout looked up at him.

"You won't find it," she said, gaining a little more confidence.

Crocodile stayed staring down at her.

"You shouldn't have been able to cut me," he said, sounding a little too arrogant.

This pushed a button in Hawke.

"You let your guard down!" snapped Hawke, tossing her head angrily.

_He's so full of himself!_ she thought.

Crocodile smiled and looked down at her.

"You're fiery," he said quietly through the bars, "I like my girls fiery."

Hawke blushed, but she kept glaring at him. She felt angry for some reason. Her fear had lessened and was replaced with a feeling of immense irritation.

Crocodile turned away.

"Miss All Sunday," he said, "You may go complete your mission."

"Yes, sir," said Miss All Sunday.

Hawke heard the doors close. She looked out at Crocodile. He was pacing the floor in front of the cage.

"You are a very interesting young lady," he finally said.

Hawke rose.

The atmosphere had suddenly changed the moment Robin had left. She didn't feel scared or endangered anymore. It was like Crocodile's threatening aura had suddenly vanished and was replaced with… something else. Hawke couldn't quite put her finger on it.

Crocodile stopped pacing and stood looking at her with the same strange expression on his face.

_It's just like when I finished dancing, _thought Hawke.

The Warlord slowly walked over to the cage until he was as close to the bars as he could be without touching them.

"What are you doing?" asked Hawke, feeling uneasy.

Crocodile smiled menacingly.

"I'm just admiring my new treasure," he breathed.

Hawke shuddered.

"You don't like being my treasure?" asked Crocodile, pretending to look hurt.

"I don't want to belong to anyone!" snapped Hawke, standing tall, her eyes flashing, "I just want to be free!"

Crocodile froze. His eyes widened and, for a moment, it seemed to Hawke that he had lost his composure. His lips quivered, his face grew a shade paler, and his mouth fell slightly open.

_What's wrong with him?_ thought Hawke, giving in to her fear and backing away from the bars.

"Wait," snapped Crocodile.

He seemed to have come to his senses, or at least some of them.

Hawke froze.

"Come here, Angel," he whispered suddenly, trying to reach his hand through the bars.

Hawke stayed where she was.

"Come here," he repeated, a threatening note creeping into his voice.

Hawke hesitated, then slowly moved forward again.

"You're from the East Blue, like the rest of the Strawhats?" he asked, lowering his hand and staring at her intently.

The question caught Hawke off-guard and she nodded automatically.

"Who are your parents?" he questioned her again.

"What?" retorted Hawke, tossing her head, "Why are you so interested?"

Crocodile's eyes widened again. He took his cigar out of his mouth.

_It can't be_, he thought, _There's no way…_

Hawke was still glaring at him.

Crocodile turned away and started back towards his chair at the head of the table. He sat down heavily. Hawke saw his hand grip the armrest tightly.

"It's impossible," she heard him mutter under his breath.

"What's impossible?" she asked, curious.

Suddenly, Crocodile turned his body into sand and swept up to the bars. Hawke shrieked and lept back as he tried to reach her through the bars. The look on his face terrified her.

"You can't be!" he spat, in a rage, "Not her!"

"Wh-what?" gasped Hawke.

She had fallen onto her knees and was gazing up in horror at the Warlord towering over her.

Then, just as suddenly as he'd lept into a rage, Crocodile calmed down. He stood looking down at Hawke, but his face was no longer disfigured by anger. He was back in his cool, collected mood.

"How old are you, Angel?" he asked, his voice calm and steady.

"S-seventeen," she stuttered.

Crocodile's brow furrowed. Then he spun around and returned to his chair.

"Why do you want to know?" asked Hawke, standing up.

"No reason," muttered Crocodile.

"You said something about a "her"," she said, excitedly, "What did you mean?"

"Nothing!" snapped Crocodile, "Shut up and sit down."

Hawke didn't move.

"Please tell me," she pleaded, her wish to know more about her past was stronger than her instinct to stay quiet.

Crocodile looked at the girl in the cage.

_It doesn't make any sense_, he thought, _but she looks so much like her…_

He closed his eyes and lowered his head.

"I was mistaken," he said, regaining his composure, "Now how about you give me that private performance," he sneered.

Hawke stiffened.

Crocodile laughed and stood up. He came over and unlocked the cage.

"Come out," he said, "If you try to escape I won't hesitate to make sure you never see your friends again."

He raised his hand and a wall of sand suddenly appeared in front of the staircase, blocking the only escape route.

Hawke glared at him.

"Get out here," he snapped, waving his hook threateningly, "I won't be able to see you through these bars."

Hawke slowly walked out of the cage. She stopped when she was in front of Crocodile. He left the cage door open and sat back down in his chair.

He pressed a button on the arm of his chair and music suddenly started to play from somewhere Hawke couldn't see.

"Go on," he goaded her, waving his hook.

Hawke stared at him. She was still standing in the entrance of the cage. She wasn't sure what was going on. But she knew that she wouldn't be able to make it to the doors again. She turned her attention to the man sitting in front of her. Something was different… She still didn't feel threatened and as long as she was out of his reach, she felt safer.

Crocodile was watching her.

_Well,_ she thought, _I guess as long as I stay away from his chair I could humor him_. She raised her arms and began swaying again.

She danced around in front of the cage, stealing glances in Crocodiles direction whenever she could. His eyes were fixed on her, although they would move from her hips to her back to her arms and back again. She could see his one hand, which was resting on his knee, clench up every now and then, gripping his knee tightly before relaxing.

_This man is such a pervert_, she thought.

But, for some reason, she felt that she was almost enjoying herself. There weren't throngs of people around her, crowding her and jeering at her. She was still wary of Crocodile, but she had the feeling he would stay in his chair, and this thought gave her a little freedom to enjoy her own movements.

_He isn't even looking at me anymore_, she noted as she cast a glance over to the table.

Crocodile had lowered his head and was staring into his lap.

Hawke continued to dance, trying to focus her thoughts on her friends and wondering where they were now and if they were okay.

_Please hurry, Luffy, Zoro,_ she thought.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Crocodile watched his prisoner dance around the room in front of him.

_She even moves the same way,_ he thought, resting his head on his fist.

He let out a small burp.

"Might have overdone it with the sake," he muttered.

He sat and pleasantly enjoyed his private performance.

A few moments passed and then his vision blurred suddenly, he blinked and rubbed his eyes with his thumb and fore-finger.

For a moment, he had seen a second person, a shadow, dancing behind Hawke, mirroring her movements.

"Must have been a trick of the light," he muttered, shifting in his seat.

The image of a woman with white hair and a blue dress, gracefully twirling in a circle, flitted into his mind.

The Warlord looked down at his hand. His bare ring finger stuck out glaringly against his other, ring-laden fingers. He clenched his fist.

_I've come too far to be regretting that,_ he thought, still looking at his bare finger, _I don't deserve to have these feelings_, _I don't deserve to miss her._

He looked back up at Hawke. The music had slowed and she was now waltzing around the room.

_She looks like she's having fun,_ he thought.

She had a faint smile on her face and she was dancing with her eyes closed.

Crocodile watched her smile. He could feel his memories starting to surface. Usually at times like this, he would distract himself by beating up pirates or playing with his bananawari. But this time, as he watched the young woman bending her arms in time to the music, he let himself get pulled back to a time when his ambitions had been shattered.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Crocodile watched the people mill around the tavern. He took another large gulp of his drink, feeling it burn all the way down his throat.

"Those damn bastards," he muttered darkly, clenching his fist and slamming it down on the table.

The plates and cutlery rattled and the people at the neighbouring table cast annoyed looks in his direction.

_Screw them_, he thought, draining the last drops from his tankard and slamming it back onto the table.

"You seem pretty upset," said a quiet voice from beside him.

Crocodile started and glanced at the waitress as she began clearing his table.

"Would you like a refill, sir?" she asked, giving him a smile.

"Make it a double," he muttered and thrust the mug out at her.

She took it.

"As you wish," she smiled and turned to leave.

"Hang on a second," said Crocodile, holding out his arm.

"Yes?" she looked down at him questioningly.

"Why is your hair white?" he asked.

The girl's face suddenly lost its smile.

"Why are you so interested?" she snapped, tossing her silvery hair.

"It looks funny," he stared at her through bleary eyes, taking in her figure, which her black pants and crop top showed off quite nicely.

The girl sighed.

"It's what I was born with, sir," she said tersely.

"Why don't you join me on my ship," he sneered, "You can be my little treasure."

The waitress's eyes flashed.

"I don't want to belong to anyone," she snapped, tossing her head, "I want to be free! And I have a feeling I wouldn't be free if I was your "little treasure"."

The girl quickly spun around and walked away from him.

Crocodile watched her as she disappeared into the kitchen, then reemerged and went over to the bar. She filled up his mug and started back towards him.

"Here you are, sir," she smiled and placed the drink on the table in front of him.

The man grunted and snatched it up. She seemed to have recovered from his little insult.

The waitress turned to go, but then she hesitated.

"You know," she said, "If you're feeling down, you should stick around for the show in a couple minutes. I'm sure the girls will make you feel better."

Crocodile jerked his face away from her.

"Those little girls won't want to get anywhere near me," he muttered.

"Don't say that," smiled the girl.

Crocodile lifted his face and removed the cloak he'd been using to hide his left arm.

He watched as the girl's eyes widened at the sight of his scar and his glinting hook.

"They wouldn't dare come close to me," he spat and threw the cloak back over his arm.

The girl looked down at him, her green eyes wide and shining.

Crocodile waited for the pity that always came from people when they were forced to acknowledge his disfigurements.

He used to be feared, respected even, but after that battle… after that crushing defeat… even his crew had abandoned him, out of pity.

He waited for the excuse to vent his anger and frustration on these stupid, pitying people.

The girl looked down at him. Crocodile stared up at her, his pain unknowingly showing in his eyes.

Then she smiled, bent down and brushed a stray hair away from his face.

"You look mighty handsome to me," she laughed, "I don't think they'll be able to keep their hands off you."

Crocodile's mouth fell open. He stared, not believing what he had just heard.

Just then someone shouted across the bar.

"Cielle, you're on in two!"

The girl looked over her shoulder.

"I'll be right there," she called.

Some cheers started up around the bar.

"Cielle's coming on!"

"I've been waiting all night for this."

The girl looked back down at Crocodile.

"I'm sorry, sir," she smiled, "But I have to go. You'll have to put up with me before you get your girls."

She winked at him and moved away towards the kitchen.

Crocodile sat, staring into his drink until the dimming of the lights attracted his attention.

_She was lying,_ he thought as the crowd settled.

A spotlight suddenly shone on a large, but run down looking stage, illuminating a dusty looking microphone.

A man walked up to the microphone and cleared his throat.

"And now the moment you've been waiting around here all day for," he greeted the crowded.

The room erupted in applause and cat calls.

"The pride of our little Grand Line community," the man continued, "The lovely ladies of the Howling Harpy Tavern will entertain you mangy pirates. And to start the evening off with a bang: I give you the gorgeous, Miss Solace D. Cielle!"

Crocodile watched as his waitress appeared on stage. She had changed from her uniform into a sky blue dress.

Cielle cleared her throat and began singing into the microphone. Her song began slowly, but then she was joined by some backup singers and the pace picked up. She began dancing around the stage, twirling and spinning, her dress flowing around her like a liquid.

Crocodile couldn't remember what the song was or how long it went on for. His eyes stayed locked on Cielle and, even when he felt a tear fall down his cheek, he couldn't look away.

"She was lying…" he whispered, trying to ignore the fact that he could feel his heart beating against his rib cage.

He didn't even stay to watch the other performers. As soon as Cielle left the stage, Crocodile stood up and exited the tavern. He stopped outside the doorway to light his cigar.

A group of men walked passed him and into the bar, casting fearful looks his way.

But Crocodile ignored them

"Solace D. Cielle," he sighed into the night.

Crocodile soon became a regular at the Howling Harpy.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Crocodile snapped back to reality.

He took a moment to remember what had been going on. He quickly banished the memories and emotions that had risen in his mind, burying them beneath his ambitions.

He looked up and surveyed the room.

The music had stopped and there was no movement in the room.

He sprang up.

Where was she?!

He swiftly crossed the room and made for the stairs, his sand wall was still in place. As he passed the table, some colour caught his eye.

He stopped.

Hawke was slumped against the wall on the far side of the room, fast asleep.

"What a considerate captive," he muttered, a grin slipping onto his face.

He stood over the sleeping girl.

Hawke seemed to sense his presence, shifting and frowning, but not waking up.

Crocodile drew a long breath on his cigar.

"Well, whether you have a connection to her or not," he muttered, picking up his prisoner, "You seem to be a very important young woman."

He returned to his chair, bringing Hawke with him.

"There we go, Angel," he muttered and sat down, leaning her against his chest.

He rested his chin on Hawke's head.

He traced the small ridges of her tattoo.

"So you're the Dark Angel of the prophecy," he muttered at the room, "That's an unfair misfortune that fate has given you."

Crocodile was a clever man. He already knew about the Dark Angel Prophecy and he had concluded from Miss All Sundays' information and Hawke's tattoo that she was, in fact, the subject of the prophecy.

_The name my minions gave you can't just be a coincidence,_ he thought.

"It's a shame that such a pretty face is the arch-enemy of the World Government," he said, looking down at Hawke's sleeping form.

She shivered and shifted in her sleep.

Crocodile stood up and approached the windows, still holding Hawke. There was a sudden movement and a group of banana crocodiles swam up to the glass.

"Hello, kids," he said, pressing his good hand against the glass and supporting Hawke with his hook, "Did you have a good snack out of that stupid Mister 3?"

The crocodiles pressed their noses against the glass opposite his hand. Then they caught sight of Hawke and started swimming around frantically, hitting their snouts off the glass and snapping at their master.

Crocodile lowered his hand and took a step back.

"What's this?" he asked, frowning, "Why are you so worked up?"

He turned and went back to his chair again, placing Hawke in the seat.

_She's so light I could probably lift her with one finger,_ he thought.

"Well, I better make sure she stays agreeable until we can trap the pirates," he muttered.

Crocodile searched through his pockets and pulled out another syringe.

He quickly injected the contents into Hawke's arm. The girl let out a faint groan, but didn't wake up.

The crocodiles started to beat themselves against the glass again, even more frantically than last time.

"Calm down!" shouted Crocodile, "Stupid animals."

A crocodile with the scar on his snout stopped and stared at his master, then at the girl in the chair. She didn't seem to be disturbed or hurt. The crocodile flicked his tail and swam away. The remaining crocodiles calmed down and swam in slow circles, coming in close to the glass as they turned.

"My kids seem to have taken a liking to you," he said to Hawke.

Her body was leaning against the arm of the chair and her head was resting at an angle on the back rest, tilting her face upwards. The patterns cast by the light moving through the water shone over her face and chest.

Crocodile clenched his hand. He kept replaying the visions of her dancing in his head.

"So much like _her_," he whispered.

_No,_ he told himself, _keep those feelings buried. You have no use or right to hope for them anymore._

He took a breath and steeled his heart. Reminding himself of his present goal and how close he was to achieving it.

"I might take Mister 1 up on his suggestion and keep you," he muttered, "If the Government doesn't find out about you, you won't pose a threat."

Just then, there was a knock at the door.

Crocodile started and swiftly tore off his cloak, throwing it over his chair, covering Hawke under it in the process.

"Enter," he said.

The door opened and Miss All Sunday descended the steps.

"The millions have just reported in. Strawhat Luffy and his crew are in the city along with the Princess," she reported.

Crocodile let out a sinister laugh and turned to face the aquarium.

"Show the filthy rats in," he said.

"Yes, sir," said Miss All Sunday and retreated out of the room.

Crocodile looked over his shoulder and saw her cast a glance at the empty cage, but she said nothing and left.

Once the door had closed, Crocodile retrieved his cloak and sat down, lifting Hawke out of the way and placing her on his lap.

Hawke was still asleep and leaned limply against his chest.

"You hardly seem a threat, Dark Angel," he whispered into the empty room, "How can you be the key to bring chaos or peace?"

Hawke mumbled in her sleep.

Her voice echoed through his thoughts as he sat in the silence.

"I don't want to belong to anyone! I want to be free!"

"It's just a coincidence," he muttered to the empty room.


	24. Chapter 24: The Crew Reunited

**Chapter 24**

**The Crew Reunited**

Luffy, Nami, Zoro and Usopp were running down a hallway.

They had lost Sanji, Chopper and Vivi outside and hadn't had time to find them since they were being chased by the marine Smoker.

They had made it into the casino and had been shown into the V.I.P room.

Luffy had taken off down a hallway and now they were running around trying to find the room where Crocodile was.

"But what's a VIP?" asked Luffy.

Usopp pointed ahead.

"Oi! The hallway splits up!" he shouted, "It says VIPs go left."

"It says pirates go the other way," panted Nami.

"Which way should we go?" asked Luffy in a panic.

"Hurry up and choose," snapped Zoro.

"Of course, we'll take the VIP," said Usopp with confidence.

"But we're pirates!" exclaimed Luffy, "And pirates go this way!"

He turned down the right hallway.

"Yeah, you got a point there," said Usopp, following the captain.

Nami and Zoro followed suit.

"Straw Hat!" shouted Smoker as he rounded the corner and came to a sudden stop.

The crew reached a dead end.

Just then, the floor opened up and the Strawhats and Smoker fell into darkness.

"What the hell's going on!" yelled the marine as they tumbled down.

"I can't believe we fell for this," muttered Zoro.

"We're falling into darkness!" exclaimed Usopp, "Better swim for it!"

Nami just screamed.

"It's a pit!" shouted Luffy, plummeting down head first.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Hawke slowly became aware of her surroundings.

She was quite warm and comfortable. It felt like she was under a blanket.

She nuzzled her head against her pillow.

_I must be back on the Merry_, she thought, _wait… that isn't right._

The events of the past two weeks came flooding back to her. She tried to get up, but her legs wouldn't move.

_Not this again,_ she thought hopelessly.

Her eyes slowly opened, but her vision was blurry. _What's going on?_ She thought. All she saw was darkness.

Hawke tried to get a bearing on her surroundings. She felt something beneath her. Her feet were dangling in the air.

_So I'm sitting on something then,_ she determined.

Suddenly she became aware of a muffled voice. She moved her hand up and held her pounding head.

_He must have drugged me again. I don't feel very well,_ she let out a weak moan.

"Ah, look who's awake now," she heard a voice say.

Suddenly her blanket was taken off her and light flooded her vision.

"Hawke!" she heard a voice cry out.

"How did he get her?!" she heard another voice.

"Luffy?" she said weakly, "Zoro?"

"We're here Hawke," shouted Luffy, "We'll save you!"

"What did you do to her?" she heard another voice exclaim.

"Nami?" she choked and wobbled on her seat.

"Woah there, Angel," said a voice from above her, "We don't want you falling off now do we?"

Hawke turned her blurry eyes upwards and looked behind her.

She was met with Crocodile's gaze and, at the same time, she became aware of his hand, which was still holding her waist.

"No," she tried to cry out and lurched her body in an attempt to escape, "Luffy help me!"

"Let her go!" she heard Luffy shout.

"Get your hands off her!" Zoro seethed.

She still couldn't see clearly and didn't have control over her movements. Crocodile easily brought her back onto his leg.

_How did I get here!_ she thought, horrified at her situation.

The last she could remember was collapsing from exhaustion after dancing for as long as she could. She remembered that Crocodile had been staring at the floor, not taking any interest in her, so she had let herself relax.

_I must have fallen asleep,_ she thought, _but what happened after?_

She shuddered.

"This beautiful creature says she's your scout," said Crocodile, "I can tell by your reaction that this is true."

"You leave Hawke alone!" shouted Usopp.

"Do you have any idea how important this girl is?" laughed Crocodile, stroking Hawkes cheek with his hook, "You clearly don't value her enough to protect her from being kidnapped."

"Luffy…" moaned Hawke, trying to clear her vision.

"She's calling for her captain," taunted Crocodile, "Are you going to save her, Strawhat? Or are you just all talk?"

"Shut up!" shouted Luffy, "Let Hawke go!"

"I think I'll keep her," said Crocodile, stroking Hawkes hair.

Hawke tried to push herself away from Crocodile. She could see the room more clearly now, although it hadn't stopped spinning. The only trace she could see of her crew was some shadows inside the cage. Her only thought was to get to Luffy.

The Warlord's hand closed down on her waist and she whimpered in pain.

"Just leave her alone, she doesn't have anything to do with this!" shouted a new voice.

This one didn't come from the cage.

Hawke looked down the table and saw Vivi on the ground by a chair. It looked like her hands were tied behind her back.

"Vivi?" she mumbled, holding her head.

"That's true," said Crocodile, turning to Vivi, "She has nothing to do with your country's war or Operation Utopia. However," he said slyly, pulling Hawke closer to him, "She is of even greater importance to the world's fate."

Miss All Sunday came into Hawke's vision. She was standing near Crocodile, a few steps behind him.

He didn't see when the agent glanced uneasily at him as he spoke those words. But Hawke did.

There was a sudden movement in the cage.

"What are you talking about Crocodile?" Smoker had gotten up off the bench he had been sitting on and approached the bars.

_What is he doing here?_ thought Hawke.

"I see you aren't important enough to know, Smoker," laughed Crocodile, "I didn't mean to catch you in my trap. It's a pity you'll have to die with these pirates. But don't worry, I'll say you died honorably in battle with the pathetic Strawhats."

Smoker grunted but he stayed at the bars, staring at Hawke.

"Leave her out of this," said Vivi again.

Crocodile sighed.

"I'll give you a choice," he said, pulling a key out of a pocket, "Thousands of innocent lives? Or four crummy pirates who have no future ahead of them?"

He stood up, pulling Hawke to her feet. Her legs still couldn't hold her weight and she sank to the floor. But she had some strength back in her arms and she tried to pull herself towards the cage.

"Just where do you think you're going?" asked Crocodile and he picked Hawke up and draped her over his shoulder.

"Hawke!" shouted Zoro, he took out his sword and slashed at the bars, "Get back here you creep!"

Crocodile ignored him.

Hawke craned her neck as far as she could, trying to see what Crocodile was doing.

He held out the key to Vivi, letting her see it before he dropped it on the ground at his feet.

The Princess was struggling with her bonds, trying to loosen them. She had just managed to free herself and make a frantic lunge for the key, when the floor opened up and the key fell.

"No!" shouted Viv, staring down into the banana crocodile feeding pen that the key had fallen into.

As she watched, a crocodile entered the pen and snatched up the key, swallowing it immediately.

"I'm sorry I was so careless in handling the key," sneered Crocodile.

He turned and snapped his fingers, a part of the wall opened up to show an underwater hallway.

"You have about an hour before this room self-destructs," laughed Crocodile, "I have no more use for it. It will fall into the depths of the Rainbase Lake."

He turned and started walking towards the doors, Hawke still draped over his shoulder. Miss All Sunday followed.

"Vivi! Do something!" shouted Luffy in a rage.

Crocodile paused and laughed.

"Pleading for your life already, Strawhat Luffy?" he sneered over his shoulder, "I guess everyone fears death."

Hawke strained to make out Luffy behind the bars of her previous prison.

_Why can't I move?_ she thought, tears of frustration coming to her eyes.

"If we die here," shouted Luffy, "Then who's going to kick his ass!"

Crocodile stiffened and turned.

"Don't get ahead of yourself, little man," he said darkly.

"You're the little one!" yelled Luffy through the bars.

Crocodile snapped his fingers.

A slab of the floor opened up and a huge banana crocodile swam up and into the room.

"If you're going to abandon them, now's the time Miss Wednesday," taunted Crocodile, "You want to stop the rebellion after all."

Hawke's eyes widened. Her vision had steadied and she could focus pretty clearly now, though she had not completely recovered.

She was facing a window looking out into the aquarium.

She gasped as she saw the banana crocodiles start lining up at the hole in the floor, waiting to get in.

"What are you doing!" she exclaimed, her voice was still weak, but it came out steady, "You leave my nakama alone!"

The crocodiles turned their attention to her.

"Yes, Princess," they said.

"What?" snapped Crocodile.

The line of crocodiles dispersed.

"What!?" he exclaimed, "What are you doing?" he yelled at the crocodiles, "Why are you listening to her?!"

Crocodile turned to the crocodile that had entered the room.

"You are forbidden to leave this room until you have killed all of them!" he shouted.

The crocodile looked at his master, then at Hawke.

"I'm sorry, Princess," he said, "Forgive me. I cannot disobey my master's direct orders."

"No!" panted Hawke.

Just then, they heard a ringing sound.

"A message," said Miss All Sunday, taking out a snail phone, "What is it?"

"Hello? Hello…" a voice came through the line.

_Sanji!_ Hawke recognized the chef's voice, _that's right, Chopper and Sanji are still outside._

"Thanks for calling. This is the Shitty Restaurant," Sanji continued.

"The Shitty Restaurant…," growled Crocodile.

"You seem to remember me," said Sanji, "I'm flattered."

"You must be the missing man on the Strawhat crew," muttered Crocodile, his features darkening, "Punk, who the hell are you?"

"Me," replied Sanji, "I'm Mister Prince."

He clenched his hand tighter around Hawke and she whimpered in pain.

"I see, Mister Prince," said Crocodile into the snail phone, "Where are you?"

"I'm not going to tell you," said Sanji, "If I did you'd come and kill me—" just then there was the sound of a shotgun.

"No," gasped Hawke.

There was a sudden silence on the line. Then another voice came through.

"Pesky bastard," it said, "Hello? We got him."

"Report your location!" demanded Crocodile.

"In the town of Rainbase," responded the voice, "Right outside the Rain Dinners casino."

Crocodile smiled and hung up the receiver.

"All is well," he said, turning to leave, "Let's go to the front gate."

Suddenly, out of nowhere, the banana crocodile lunged forward and bite a huge chunk out of the stone staircase.

"Vivi!" Hawke heard Luffy shout.

Crocodile had turned around, so Hawke was facing away from everything.

"What's happening?" she panted and wiggled around, trying to see over her shoulder.

"Stay still," Crocodile said menacingly and clamped his hand down even harder on her waist.

"Ouch," cried Hawke.

Just then she felt a jolt. Looking around she saw that Crocodile had shot out his hook.

"Look out, Vivi!" she heard Luffy yell again.

Then she heard Vivi's scream.

"Stop hurting her!" seethed Hawke.

Her blood was rushing through her veins. She moved her arms back and forth, flexing them.

_Great, I can move them completely now_, she thought and proceeded to pound her fists against Crocodile's back.

"Don't try anything stupid," muttered Crocodile.

Hawke suddenly felt her hands being pulled back. She looked down and saw that Miss All Sunday's arms were immobilizing hers.

She groaned in frustration.

She could hear the shouts of her captain and crew; urging Vivi to wake up and save them.

_He must have thrown her down,_ thought Hawke, _I hope she's okay._

"If you love your nakama that much, go ahead and die with them," sneered Crocodile.

He turned and started walking down the hall, followed by Miss All Sunday.

Hawke finally got a full view of the room her friends were trapped in. The water was already covering the entire floor, and more was rushing in every second.

"No," cried Hawke faintly, "They'll drown!"

"Yes, I'm sorry Angel," said Crocodile as they neared the end of the corridor, "But if your friends are really this weak, you deserve better."

Hawke watched the water pouring in and reached out her hands. If only she could get her strength back!

"Luffy! Zoro! Nami! Usopp! Vivi!" she shouted.

"I've got to take care of this Mister Prince," muttered Crocodile.

Hawke froze. _That's right_, she thought, _Sanji's still out there, there's no way those millions could have actually shot him._

She looked back at the cage as it disappeared behind the door frame.

_Don't worry guys,_ she thought, _I'll find a way to get Sanji and Chopper down here and save you._

Crocodile carried Hawke back through the halls and into the casino.

_I need to remember the route!_ she thought.

Hawke started ripping sequences off of her dress and letting them fall behind Crocodile as he walked.

_There,_ she thought, _now I can find my way back_.

Before entering the main gambling room, Crocodile took Hawke off his shoulder and propped her against his side.

Hawke tried to stand away from the man, but her legs were still quite weak and she slumped against him, clinging to his robe.

"I can't have someone clinging to me like this," muttered Crocodile, "Take her Miss All Sunday."

Hawke let go of Crocodiles cloak and fell sideways. Miss All Sunday caught her hand.

"Come quietly now," she said and they followed Crocodile out into the casino.

Hawk was pulled along through the throng of people, barely managing to stay on her feet.

Her mind was racing. She had to get back to Luffy right now!

As she was pulled through a large group of people, Hawke felt someone grab her free hand. The hand that Robin was holding was suddenly jerked and Hawke lost sight of her and Crocodile.

The person who had grabbed her other hand was pulling her back the way she had come. Hawke turned to see who it was.

"Sanji!" she let out an excited whisper.

"I'm so glad to have found you Hawke-san," smiled Sanji.

Hawke looked over her shoulder.

"Won't they realize I'm missing?" she asked nervously.

"I slipped another woman's hand into hers when I rescued you," said Sanji, "She won't notice until they're over the bridge."

Just then there was an explosion outside.

"Speaking of which…" smiled Sanji, "Let's go Hawke-san, we have to find the rest of the crew."

Hawke tested each of her legs, but she lost her balance again and clung to Sanji for support.

"I know where they are," she said, "And we have to get there fast. But I can't walk like this."

Just then, they heard a voice from behind them.

"The bridge collapsed?! Oh no, I can't get outside now!"

Hawke turned.

"Vivi!" she gasped, "You're okay! I'm so glad."

Vivi stopped in her tracks.

Sanji stepped out, Hawke still hanging on his arm.

"It's not that you can't get out," he said suavely, "It's that Baroque Works can't get back in."

Vivi gasped.

"Everything's going to plan," said Sanji, with a dramatic flourish of his cigarette, "Right now Chopper's running around the city as a decoy. We'd better hurry, the rebellion's started."

"Sanji-san!" exclaimed Vivi with a huge smile, "Hawke-san, you escaped!"

Hawke smiled.

"That was Sanji's doing too," she said.

"Just tell me where to go, Princess," said Sanji with his usual charm.

The three made to run back into the corridor, but Hawke tripped and fell.

"I'm sorry," she gasped, "Crocodile drugged me and I haven't got my strength back in my legs."

"He did what!?" shouted Sanji, scooping Hawke up in his arms, "That bastard will pay for what he's done."

Sanji and Vivi started running back towards the conference room.

"But Sanji-san," said Vivi, "I thought you were shot."

"Me?" smiled Sanji, and he proceeded to explain the plan that led Crocodile on a wild goose chase across Rainbase.

"Chopper will be alright, won't he?" asked Hawke, looking up at Sanji.

"Of course," said Sanji, "He's got a trick up his sleeve."

Then he looked down at Hawke.

"Do you love me, Hawke-chwan!" he exclaimed suddenly, "I'll carry you like this to the ends of the earth! I'll be your prince!"

"Calm down, Sanji," muttered Hawke, "Turn down that hallway."

The trio soon made it back to the conference room.

The crew inside the cage were screaming and yelling and the crocodile was pacing back and forth in front of the cage.

"If you'll excuse me, Hawke-san," said Sanji, putting her down lightly on the staircase.

The cook then jumped down and ran up behind the crocodile.

He kicked the crocodile in the stomach so hard that the poor animal was knocked out immediately.

"Did I keep you waiting?" asked Sanji, smiling at the crew in the cage.

They heard Zoro yell something, but Sanji was flailing his arms all over the place.

"Nami-san!" he swooned, "Do you love me?"

Suddenly they heard Luffy's voice.

"Vivi!" he shouted, "Good job!"

Vivi smiled and both girls gave the captain a thumbs-up.

"Oi, Hawke's there too!" cried Luffy, "Are you okay, Hawke?"

Hawke waved down at him.

"I'm fine Luffy," she smiled.

Just then, the crocodile that Sanji had knocked out spit out a large white ball.

"What is that?" asked Sanji.

"It's the key!" shouted Luffy.

"That doesn't look like a key," snapped Nami.

The ball started to crack and Mister 3 jumped out of it.

"Water!" he gasped, "It's truly a miracle!"

"Mister 3" shouted Vivi, "Why were you in a crocodiles stomach?!"

Mister 3 didn't answer her, he was too busy lapping up all the water he could.

"I've revived!" he shouted, then he stopped, "What's this?"

He reached down and picked up a key.

"It's the key!" shouted Luffy, "Give it here!"

"Ahh!" screamed Mister 3, "It's you guys!"

Then he got a calculating look in his eye.

He leaned back his arm and threw the key back into the aquarium.

"Good luck finding it!" he cackled.

"Bastard!" snarled Sanji.

"Wait a second, Sanji," called Usopp, "He can just make a key out of his wax, can't he?"

Sanji smiled.

"Good idea, Usopp," he grinned at Mister 3.

"Wait, what?" stuttered the agent.

Sanji planted a swift kick to Mister 3's head and the agent quickly became agreeable. He used his wax fruit powers to open the door and the rest of the crew was free.

"Nice piece of work, Candleman," said Sanji.

Hawke and Vivi climbed down the remains of the staircase. The rest had given Hawke enough time to stretch her legs and get feeling back into them.

"The tunnel they left through earlier," said Nami, pointing at the passage, "It must lead to Alubarna."

"But that way is still full of banana crocodiles!" exclaimed Vivi.

Hawke stepped forward.

"Please get out of the way," she spoke to the crocodiles, raising her hand.

The animals saw her and quietly retreated back into the aquarium.

"Well… that won't be a problem anymore," said Nami, her voice showing her amazement.

"Great!" shouted Luffy, "They listened to Hawke!"

"I would've liked to beat them up though," growled Zoro, but he was grinning at her.

Hawke stared at her captain, no, at her brother, and the swordsman as they started to head down the passage.

_They came,_ she thought, tears coming to her eyes and a feeling of immense relief washing over her.

Suddenly, there was an immense cracking sound.

"The walls!" shouted Usopp in terror.

Hawke gasped as the windows broke and the walls started collapsing. The pressure had finally gotten to great and the room was caving in on itself!

"You overdid it!" snapped Zoro to Sanji

The cook glared at the swordsman.

"What did you say, Marimo?"

The passage roof broke and water rushed in over the crew.

Hawke was bowled over by the wave and tumbled backwards until she hit something. _Ouch,_ she thought, turning to see what it was.

She had been swept into the door of the cage, the corner of it snagging on her dress.

Hawke peered through the water. She could see Nami, Usopp and Vivi being swept up in a current, sucking them out into the lake. Sanji had grabbed Luffy and was swimming in the same direction.

_Where's Zoro?_ she thought, frantically searching the submerged room for the swordsman.

Her eyes caught some movement at the bottom and she swam down.

Zoro was trying to pull Smoker out from under a piece of rubble, but the stone seemed to be weighing down on the marine and Zoro was struggling.

Hawke unfurled her wings and sped down, grabbing the rubble and pulling it back with all her might. She felt it give slightly and looked down.

Zoro had pulled Smoker out from under it and swam up from the bottom.

The swordsman gave her a smirk, which she returned with a wave and a blush.

She grabbed Smokers jacket and helped Zoro carry the marine out into the lake.

They reached the shore of the lake, and pulled Smoker out of the water.

Sanji had pulled Luffy out and Nami and Vivi were having a hard time dragging Usopp out by his nose. They were both unconscious.

"Oi, oi," said Sanji, coming over and helping Hawke out of the water, "Why did you guys rescue the enemy?"

"Shut up!" snapped Zoro, "I didn't want to."

Hawke glanced at him.

"He would've died," she mumbled, "He's like Luffy, a hammer in the water…"

"Still," snapped Zoro, "This would've been the perfect chance to get rid of him."

Smoker started choking and gasping for air.

Hawke knelt down beside the marine. She knew he was their enemy, but they had all just gone through the same experience.

"Are you okay?" she asked, putting her hand on the marine's back.

"We've lost a big chunk of time here," Sanji was saying, "Vivi-chan, can we still make it?"

"I don't know," said Vivi, wringing out her robes.

Suddenly, Hawke was pushed to the ground as Smoker sprang up and lunged his weapon at Zoro.

"Roronoa!" he shouted.

Zoro brought up his sword and blocked the attack with the blade.

"Why did you save me?" demanded the marine.

Zoro stared at Smoker over his sword.

"I was just following the captain's orders," he said, lowering his sword, "Don't think you have to thank me or anything. It was just one of his whims. Forget about it."

"Zoro…," whispered Hawke.

Smoker stood there for a few moments.

"Then I assume you don't mind if I carry out my official duties," he said.

"Hear that," muttered Sanji, "That's what we get for rescuing a marine."

"Get away from him, Hawke," muttered Zoro, motioning for her to join him.

Hawke quickly went over to his side.

But Smoker stayed where he was.

Suddenly, Luffy and Usopp sprang to life.

"Alright!" shouted Usopp, "We're heading for Alubarna!"

"Where the hell is Crocodile!" yelled Luffy.

"Ah, they finally came too," muttered Nami.

Luffy turned and noticed Smoker.

"Oi, Smokey," he shouted, "You wanna fight?"

Smoker stared at the captain, dumbfounded.

"When is he actually serious?" he muttered.

Hawke tugged on Zoro's sleeve.

"The marines are coming," she said, pointing to the streets of the city.

Smoker and Luffy were still facing off. But then Smoker sighed and lowered his head.

"Go," he said, "But this is the last time I'll let you go. When we meet again, your life is over."

The crew stared at him for a moment.

Then the cries of the marines could be heard.

"There they are!"

"Don't let them escape!"

Hawke smiled, looking up at Zoro.

He looked down at her and laughed.

He laughed a real laugh, with a real smile. Hawke hadn't seen him smile like this since she joined the crew. Her heart soared at the sight of that smile.

"Let's get going," said Sanji, "The marines are on their way. Which way is Alubarna?"

"This way," pointed Vivi, "Straight to the east."

The crew took off.

Hawke hesitated.

Zoro called to Luffy.

"Oi, Luffy, hurry up! What are you doing?"

"Right," said Luffy, then he looked back to Smoker, a smile spread from ear to ear, "Y'know, I don't hate you."

Smoker looked taken aback, then his face flushed.

"Get out of here now!" he shouted, swinging his weapon at Luffy.

"Woah!" shouted Luffy and high-tailed it after the crew.

As he ran passed them, Hawke and Zoro exchanged grins before sprinting after him.

Hawke felt happiness well up inside her. She was back with her crew. They had come to get her. She was back with her family. She glanced to her side, where Zoro was running alongside her.

_This moment is perfect,_ she thought.

"Guys!" shouted Luffy from the front, "We're heading straight to Alubarna!"

"Aye!" returned the crew as they sped towards the horizon.


	25. Chapter 25: Alubarna

**Chapter 25**

**Alubarna**

The crew tore through the streets of Rainbase.

"Don't tell me we're going to run all the way to Alubarna!" panted Usopp.

Hawke looked around.

"Where did Chopper go?" she shouted up to the others.

"And Eyelash!" panted Nami, "Where did Eyelash go?"

"Who's Eyelash?" asked Hawke.

"Whatever," shouted Luffy over his shoulder, "There are stables in this town right? Let's get horses!"

"But the marines are all over the city," panted Vivi.

"Set your minds at ease," said Sanji, "Look ahead."

They were nearing the edge of the town, ahead of them stretched the desert. There was a huge cloud of whirling dust and sand traveling very quickly in their direction.

"What is that?!" exclaimed Hawke.

The movement stopped in front of them and the sand settled.

"Hey guys!" shouted a small form from above them.

"Chopper!" gasped Hawke.

"A crab?!" shouted Usopp, his eyes popping out of his head.

The crew gawked at the scene before them.

Chopper and a camel were riding atop a giant crab!

"That's a Moving Crab!" exclaimed Vivi.

"It looks tasty!" shouted Luffy.

"Let's ride!" Chopper shouted down at the crew.

"We can ride it?!" exclaimed Luffy, "Cool! Cool! Cool! Awesome! Cool!"

The captain catapulted himself up onto the crabs eye stalk.

"Nice to meet ya!" he laughed.

The crab lowered its claw.

"You've brought something amazing back again," Sanji said up to Chopper as he and Nami climbed aboard.

Zoro, Hawke, Vivi and Usopp clambered onto the other claw and were raised up onto the crabs back.

"He's a friend of Eyelashes," said Chopper, "Eyelash was born in this town, so he has lots of friends all over the place."

He gestured over at the camel.

"But they're all perverts…," he added embarrassingly.

"Oh so this is Eyelash," laughed Hawke and she went over and began petting the camel on the nose.

Eyelash let out snorts and grunts of pleasure.

"Moving Crabs usually stay underground so long that they're known as phantom crabs," Vivi exclaimed, "But it seems we have one right here."

"It moves pretty fast then?" asked Zoro, taking a seat.

"Guys, hold on tight," said Chopper as he raised the reins in his hooves, "Let's go!"

There was a sudden jolt and the crab sped off, moving along sideways.

"Oof!" grunted Hawke as she lost her footing and fell onto her knees, "What a lively start."

They'd only been travelling for seconds, when Vivi let out a sudden scream. The crew turned around to see her being dragged off the crab by a golden hook.

"Crocodile!" cried Hawke.

"Stop! Chopper!" shouted Zoro.

Chopper yanked on the reins and the crab skidded to a halt.

"It's him!" shouted Luffy, "You damned…!"

Luffy jumped up and pulled Vivi out of the hook, putting himself in her place and throwing the princess back onto the crab.

"Oi, Luffy!" called Zoro.

They watched as two figures appeared on the horizon. Luffy was quickly being dragged back towards them.

"You guys go on ahead!" they heard the captain yell, "I'll be fine by myself!"

"Luffy!" screamed Hawke.

The crew stood frozen in hesitation.

Luffy landed on the sand with a thud.

"Make sure you get her there safe!" he shouted, "Get Vivi back home! Make sure!"

Hawke could see his smile even from that distance.

Still, nobody made a move.

"Make sure, okay?" Luffy said again.

"That… idiot," muttered Zoro.

Hawke saw him stiffen.

"Oi!" he shouted, "Let's go, Chopper!"

He turned to the reindeer.

"From here… straight to Alubarna!"

Chopper bit his lip and turned.

"Right, got it," he said, raising the reins, "Let's go!"

The crab jerked into movement again.

Hawke watched the three figures on the sand start to fade away.

"No…" she gasped quietly.

"Oi, Zoro!" shouted Usopp in a panic, "You're just gunna leave him?! Isn't that a bit cruel?! You'd better protect me from now on!?"

"Luffy-san!" shouted Vivi, straining against Nami's arms.

"It's okay, Vivi," said the navigator through clenched teeth, "He'll be fine. I'm more worried about them! Once Luffy chooses his opponent… they never get away without a beating."

Zoro stood up.

"Listen, Vivi," he said, "He'll keep Crocodile busy. The instant the Rebel Army moved to attack, the time limit on this country was decided. If the Rebel Army and the Royal Army collide, this country is done for. And if you are the only hope for stopping them… then you must live no matter what!"

Zoro gripped his swords.

"From now on, anything that happens to us is of no importance!" he snapped.

"But…" Vivi stuttered.

"Vivi-chan," said Sanji, "You set up this fight. You left your country years ago, and challenged an organization you knew nothing about. However," he turned, "You can't tell yourself you're fighting alone anymore."

Vivi's eyes widened.

She stood and took a deep breath.

"Luffy-san!" she shouted at the top of her lungs, "We shall await you in Alubarna!"

"Okay!" they heard their captain's voice come back over the sand.

And then, he was gone.

Hawke stared out at the now empty desert, still resting on her knees.

"No…Luffy," she whispered.

She had just gotten her captain back and now he had been taken from her again. She felt tears welling up in her eyes.

Zoro noticed.

"He'll be fine," he said, coming to sit beside Hawke, "We have to trust in our captain."

Hawke wiped her eyes and nodded, looking back to where Luffy had disappeared.

"But I just found you all again," she sighed, her voice still trembling.

"And we're very glad to have you back," said Usopp, turning his own gaze from the horizon.

Hawke sighed happily, despite her overwhelming worry.

"I'm so glad to see you again," she smiled at her friends, "I wasn't sure how much longer I could stay in Crocodile's clutches."

Zoro's face darkened.

"By the way," he said, "What was he doing to you?"

Hawke lowered her eyes.

"I don't remember how I got under his cloak…" she shivered, "I don't really want to think about it."

She rubbed her hands up and down her arms.

"I feel disgusting," she muttered.

The crew exchanged concerned glances.

"Were you okay, though, Hawke?" asked Nami, "He didn't torture you did he?"

Hawke shook her head.

"Other than these," she motioned to the welts on her chest and legs, "I wasn't hurt. Although he wasn't that reliable with my meals, now that I think about it."

"This is an outrage!" shouted Sanji, his face full of wrath, "Don't you worry, Hawke-san, I shall make sure you never go hungry again!"

"I thought you were looking thinner than usual," Nami looked at her with concern.

Hawke smiled.

"I'm fine," she said, "I'm not hungry at the moment. But thank you, Sanji, I'll be looking forward to your cooking."

Sanji gave her a swoon and a smile, but then his face became dark again.

"Oi, Hawke-san," he said, fingering his ciragette and casting an almost unnoticeable glance in Zoro's direction, "Did I hear you correctly when we were in the casino?"

"Huh?" asked Hawke, "When?"

"Did Crocodile drug you?" asked Sanji.

Zoro stiffened.

"What?!" he snapped, whirling to face Hawke.

"Well…," Hawke stuttered, "He did at least once. He didn't want me to hear him tell his top agents his whole plan so he injected something into my arm and I passed out."

"He drugged you?!" exclaimed Usopp.

"What?" Nami gasped, "Are you feeling okay, Hawke?"

Hawke raised her hands defensively in front of her.

"Yes," she reassured them, "I'm fine now. And I assumed that he'd drugged me again, because when I woke up-" she shuddered, "-there, I felt the same as when I had woken up then, only a bit worse. I couldn't control my body."

"That sounds awful," Nami sympathized.

"Yes, it is awful," said Sanji soberly, "But I have one more question Hawke-san."

"What is it, Sanji?" replied Hawke.

"Your dress is so becoming on you and my soul trembles when I see you in it," he began, "But something very disturbing is weighing on my mind."

"Huh, yeah," said Usoppp suddenly, "You weren't wearing that when we last saw you."

Hawke looked down and blushed. She had almost forgotten what she was wearing. _And my clothes are probably at the bottom of that lake_, she thought, _...my jacket_.

"Well he was keeping me in the same cage that you guys were in," she said, "But he let me out and made me dance for him and some other Baroques Works member."

She motioned to her clothes.

"That's why I'm wearing this."

Zoro's hand clenched around his swords.

"I'm going to kill that creep!" he shouted and sprang up, making a dive off the crab.

It was all Usopp and Nami could do to keep him from jumping off.

"Please don't leave," Hawke let out a panicked little squeak.

Zoro froze, but he was still breathing very heavily.

"I want us all to stay together," she finished, blushing furiously and lowering her face.

_That came out faster than I meant it too,_ she thought.

Zoro quieted and gruffly shook off Usopps hand. He returned to his spot beside Hawke.

Suddenly, there was a huge roar from the way they had come.

Looking back, the crew saw a sand storm had sprung up near Rainbase.

"It's him," muttered Vivi.

"Luffy…," whispered Hawke, closing her eyes, "I know you'll be okay."

She wanted to run to her brother's side so much, but they needed to get Vivi to where she needed to go. _And where was that?_ Hawke thought, realising that she had no idea what was going on.

"Oh, Zoro," said Hawke, "Where did you say we were going?"

"To Alubarna," replied the swordsman.

"Where's that?" asked Hawke.

"It's the capital city of Alabasta," put in Vivi, "That's where the royal palace is," she lowered her face and turned towards the horizon, "And that's where the rebel army is going to attack tomorrow morning."

"What?!" exclaimed Hawke, "What's happened since I last saw you guys?"

"A lot," muttered Usopp, "I almost died from the heat four times."

Nami rolled her eyes at him.

"We knew we would end up at Crocodile anyways," she started, "And since he was Mister 0, we figured that's where they would take you."

Hawke nodded.

"I came to the same conclusion," she said.

"Good," smiled Nami, "Well we went to the city that was supposed to be the rebel base, but it was already abandoned."

"There was only on old man who knew Vivi," said Chopper.

"Yes," continued Nami, "And he told us that the rebels were already moving to launch their attack."

Zoro adjusted his sitting position.

"So we changed our plans and decided to come here first because it was where Crocodile had his base," he said.

"So now that we have you back again," said Vivi, still looking at the horizon, "And we know a bit more of Crocodiles plan, we need to get to Alubarna as fast as we can so we can get there before the rebels do and hopefully stop this war."

Hawke nodded.

"Oh my," she said, "You've all been working really hard to help Vivi. And all I've been doing is sitting in a cage."

Her shoulders drooped.

"It wasn't your fault, Hawke-san," said Sanji, "Don't blame yourself."

"Yeah," said Usopp, "And what did Crocodile mean when he said you were so important?"

Hawke stiffened. She had been hoping that they wouldn't remember that part.

"Well," she mumbled, "I'm not sure if I'd believe what he said."

"Well what did he mean?" asked Zoro, leaning in.

Hawke looked at him, then at the rest of the crew. She wasn't even sure if the prophecy was real, and it would only add stress to the crew. They had to keep focused in order to help Vivi.

"I really don't know," she said, lowering her eyes, "He probably just wanted to make Luffy as upset as he could."

"Hmph," grunted Zoro and he leaned back again.

Hawke took out her wings and stretched them.

"It's been a long time since I've flown," she smiled, "I think I might've strained them too hard back there."

"So you can do that!" said Vivi, gaping at Hawkes wings, "I wasn't sure if I'd been seeing you right back when we were caught up in the water…"

"Oh right," laughed Usopp, "We didn't tell you about Hawke's special ability did we?"

"So you have devil fruit powers too then?" asked Vivi, coming over and feeling Hawkes feathers.

Hawke shook her head.

"No, these are a part of my body," she said as she stretched her wings again and turned to show Vivi her back.

Vivi's eyes widened and she seemed to be thinking hard for a moment.

"What's wrong?" asked Hawke.

Vivi was staring at her.

"I just think I've seen a statue of you in the palace," she said.

"What?" asked Zoro, "A statue of Hawke?"

"Well not exactly of her," corrected Vivi, "It's a statue of a person in robes and a hood."

"How does that remind you of Hawke?" asked Usopp dubiously.

"It doesn't have a name," said Vivi, "No one knows where it came from or if it's a man or a woman. But it has black wings coming out of its back just like Hawke."

The crew stared back at her.

"The records only say that it appeared in the treasury about eight hundred years ago and no one knows who put it there," continued Vivi, "There is a plaque on the sculpture, and all it says is "Dark Angel"."

Hawke blinked. Those words kept popping up all of a sudden. Could it be more than coincidence?

"Dark Angel?" repeated Usopp, "What does that mean?"

Vivi shrugged.

"I just thought of it when I saw Hawkes wings," she said, "Wasn't Crocodile calling you Angel?"

Hawke nodded.

"Yes," she admitted, "The billions who captured me gave me the nickname because I wouldn't tell them my real one."

"Well it doesn't make any sense to me," said Nami, "We should just focus on getting to Alubarna for now."

"You're right," agreed Vivi, and she returned her gaze to the horizon.

But Hawke's mind was full of uncertain thoughts as they were transported through the desert.

Was this prophecy real? And if it was, was she this Dark Angel? And why was this happening all of a sudden?

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

The sun was almost set.

They traveled in silence for a while.

Zoro was busying himself by lifting Eyelash on his sword.

Hawke was watching him out of the corner of her eye. She could tell that he was worried about Luffy and was trying to work off his energy.

Usopp was telling Chopper some tall tales about crabs and shrimp and how it was he that had made them walk sideways.

"Zoro," Nami said, "Aren't you just wasting your strength?"

"Shut up," growled the swordsman.

"Leave him be, Nami-san," said Sanji from the front of the crab, "If he doesn't work off his strength, he'll be beside himself with tension. He gets worked up easily."

Hawke let a small smile creep onto her lips. Sanji was bang on.

"And besides," the cook continued, drawing on his cigarette, "He's just gotten a full blown taste of the level of a Warlord."

Zoro tensed.

"Hey, jackass," he grunted, "What are you trying to say? Come out and say it."

Sanji rolled his eyes.

"Alright, I'll tell you," he waved his arm, "You're afraid. Afraid that Luffy might lose."

"Me?!" shouted Zoro, "Afraid?! You… you pretty eyebrows!"

"Oh, now I'm pissed," snapped Sanji, "You're a Marimo head!"

"What?!" retorted Zoro.

The two men sprang up and butted heads.

"You wanna fight asshole?" they both taunted in unison.

Just then, Nami knocked them both down with her fists of iron.

"Cut it out," she snapped, "This is pointless."

Vivi sprang up.

"He's fine!" she said nervously, "Everyone! Luffy-san won't lose! We made a promise right? We said we'd meet in Alubarna!"

"You're the one worrying the most!" exclaimed Usopp.

Nami went over and tapped Vivi on the head.

"You just worry about the rebellion," she said sternly.

"My apologies, Vivi-chan," said Sanji, sitting up.

"If we had to follow you, we'd be totally lost," sighed Zoro, going back to lifting Eyelash.

"Zoro," Hawke gave him a stern look, "Don't be so mean."

The swordsman grunted. Hawke caught the corner of his lip twitch as he turned away.

_Is he mad at me?_ she thought, _or was that a smile? _She couldn't tell.

"Alright!" said Nami, "Let's go to Alubarna! Forward Scissors!"

"Huh?" asked Usopp, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It's the crab's name," replied Nami.

"Scissors?!" exclaimed Usopp.

"Got a problem with that?!" Nami turned on him.

"None at all," stuttered Usopp, turning his attention to his shoe.

Hawke smiled as she watched the familiar clashes among her crew members.

_This is definitely where I feel like I'm home,_ she thought.

Just as the sun sank below the horizon, a ribbon of blue appeared in the sand ahead of them.

"A river!" exclaimed Hawke, standing and walking to the edge of the crab's shell.

"We need to find a way to cross it immediately," said Vivi, "This crab won't be able to."

"The crab can't cross the river?!" shouted Usopp.

"Moving crabs are desert creatures," Vivi explained, "They can't stand the water."

"But it's a crab! A crab!" exclaimed Usopp again, "We're in trouble."

He took out a map and laid it on the shell.

"This river is practically an ocean," he continued, "If we have to cross it, we'll never make it in time! And even if we cross the river, there are still tens of kilometers of desert to cross! If this crab doesn't make it across the river, are we going to run the rest of the way?"

"I guess we'll have to," said Nami, staring at the map.

"We'll never make it!" shouted Usopp, "There's just no way!"

"There's the Sandora River!" said Sanji, pointing ahead.

They were much closer to the water.

"Please do something, Scissors-kun," pleaded Nami in a girly voice.

"That's it!" exclaimed Chopper, "Scissors likes dancing girls!"

Nami immediately dropped her cloak, revealing her dancers outfit underneath.

"Like this?" the she said.

"Probably," replied Chopper.

Hawke looked down at her own outfit and blushed, covering herself with her hands. She wasn't as bold as Nami was.

Just then, she felt something being draped over her shoulders.

She looked up.

"Zoro!" she said, seeing the swordsman.

"Just put this on," he snapped, pulling the hood of a cloak up over her head.

Hawke stared at him, then she smiled.

"Thanks, Zoro!" she said warmly.

"Yeah, as long as that stupid cook doesn't drool on you," he grumbled.

Hawke turned her attention back to Nami.

"I think he's pretty distracted," she laughed.

"Oh my!" swooned Sanji, fawning over Nami's outfit.

Eyelash was giving her goo-goo eyes too.

"Sheesh," muttered Hawke, crossing her arms, "Men!"

"He's looking this way!" said Chopper excitedly, pointing at Scissors' eye stalks.

The crab immediately quadrupled his speed.

"He's accelerating!" said Chopper happily.

"Nami-swaaannn!" shouted Sanji.

"You managed to break two animals with your dumb routine," scoffed Zoro.

"Yosh!" said Nami, completely ignoring the insult, "Ero-Power!"

"And how does this solve our problem?" muttered Usopp, "Chopper?!"

The crew watched as the river quickly approached. Soon they were right on the beach.

"Go!" shouted Chopper.

The crab sped down the dune and out onto the water.

For the first few seconds it actually seemed to work. The crab had picked up enough speed that it skimmed over the water.

"Th-this is really something," noted Zoro.

"This is great!" shouted Usopp, "This is a miracle! Just stay on the water's surface the whole way! Run! Run the whole way!"

But then the crab quickly began sinking, leaving the crew floating in the middle of the river.

"Don't sink you stupid crab!" shouted Usopp as he surfaced.

"We don't have time to sit around screaming," muttered Zoro, putting Chopper on his head, "Keep moving."

"Aren't there any ships?" complained Usopp, "About how far is it to the other shore?"

"About fifty kilometres," said Vivi, staring ahead.

"We can't swim that far!" shouted Usopp.

Hawke surfaced and looked back at the shore.

"Thanks!" she shouted, waving at Scissors, who had gotten out onto the beach.

"Thank you!" called Chopper, turning on Zoro's head to wave.

"This is no time to be cheerful," muttered Usopp.

Hawke giggled.

"You look good like that, Zoro," she laughed.

"What?!" growled the swordsman, "What are you talking about?!"

Hawke smiled and kept swimming.

Just then, the water in front of them exploded and a giant catfish emerged from the river.

"What now?!" cried Usopp.

"A Giant Sandora Catfish!" screamed Vivi, "Its favourite food is people!"

"What?!" the crew shouted.

Everyone started swimming for their lives as the catfish lunged at them.

As Hawke swam, she felt a movement below her.

"What's this?" she muttered.

Just then, the catfish stopped chasing them and began to shake.

"What's going on?" snapped Zoro, "I can't see!"

Chopper was clinging to his face.

"Chopper, let go!" Zoro shouted.

The catfish was suddenly thrown into the air. A number of smaller shapes were surrounding it as it fell.

"What are those?!" exclaimed Hawke, looking at the strange looking manatee turtles.

"Kung-fu dugongs!" whimpered Usopp.

One of them came forward and began making noises.

"He said "We cannot abandon Master's disciples!"," said Chopper.

"What?" Hawke was confused.

"We'll explain later, just get on," said Nami.

The crew climbed onto the catfishes back and the dugongs pulled them across the river.

They made it to the other side of the river and clambered up onto the bank.

The dugongs said farewell and returned to the water.

"Thank you! Bye-Bye!" Chopper shouted after them.

"So what were those things?" Hawke asked Nami.

"Oh, they're Kung-fu Dugongs," she explained, "We ran into them earlier and Luffy beat them up."

"Why'd he beat up those sweet things?!" gasped Hawke.

"Well once you beat them, they're sworn to be your disciple," said Vivi, "So they are all loyal to Luffy and they helped us out since they think we're his disciples too."

"Oh," said Hawke bluntly, "Well as long as we made it across quickly enough. Can we still make it in time?"

"It's hard to say," said Vivi nervously, "Even riding Eyelash we might not be fast enough."

"And he can only take two people," said Usopp, "And if Baroque Works is going to attack us, it'll be closer to the city. Is there any way we can all get there together?"

The group was silent.

"Shit, there isn't _anything_?" asked Usopp.

"I could fly," said Hawke, "But I can only carry one person."

"Damn, that's not enough," muttered Usopp.

Just then, Nami pointed into the desert.

"Look! Over there!" she cried.

There was a large cloud of dust approaching them.

"What is it?" asked Usopp, running over, "The enemy? They're onto us already!?"

"No, it's…" Vivi began.

The figures in the cloud became clearer.

"Carue!" the princess shouted, "And the Super Sonic Duck Squad!"

A group of ducks came running up to the pirates.

"You've come to help us!" cried Vivi.

The ducks saluted her.

"Carue!" she cried and hugged the duck around his neck.

There were more than enough ducks for everyone.

The crew each took a duck and Vivi stayed on Eyelash since he was more comfortable.

As Hawke got onto her duck, her cloak snagged on her stirrup, and she fell back onto the sand.

"Are you alright, Hawke-san?" asked Vivi.

"Yes I'm alright," replied Hawke as she stood, "I just got caught in my cloak."

"Huh?" Sanji looked over, "Where did your lovely dress go, Hawke-san? When'd you get a cloak?"

"Zoro gave this to me," Hawke smiled, "I was a bit chilly in only a dress anyways."

Hawke mounted her duck successfully on her second try.

She draped the cloak around her and pulled up the hood.

Usopp glanced over at her.

"That gives me an idea," he said and waved the rest of the crew over to him.

After the plan was explained, the crew readied to leave.

"But what if that Mr. 2 comes after us," Hawke asked suddenly, "If he's as good as you say he is. Since we'll be separated, how will we be able to tell who's the real one?"

"Oh, that's right," said Usopp, "You weren't there when Zoro thought up our double marks."

"Double marks?" asked Hawke.

Zoro got off his duck and came over to her, ripping off a piece of his cloak and taking out a marker from his waistband.

"Here, hold out your arm," he instructed.

Hawke did as she was told.

Zoro drew an X on her arm with the marker, then wrapped the symbol with the cloth.

"Now, if you have any doubts about our identity, just tell us to prove ourselves," said the swordsman, "If we can't show you the mark under the cloth, then it isn't us."

Hawke looked at the fabric tied to her arm.

"That's a really good plan, Zoro," she said.

The swordsman grunted and returned to his duck.

"It's a mark of our friendship!" said Usopp proudly, raising his hand in the air.

The rest of the crew followed suit.

"Alright," said Nami, "Let's put our plan into action!"

"Yeah!" they cried and set off into the desert.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

The crew sped towards Alubarna.

The Duck Squad was the fastest way to travel in Alabasta and they were making good time.

As they came into view of the city, the top agents of the Baroques Works Angency could be seen sitting at the gates waiting for them.

Their orders were to eliminate Vivi. But they couldn't tell which of the six approaching figures the princess was! They were all wearing the same cloaks!

Mr. 4 shot at the approaching Duck Squad and they scattered.

Two ducks ran off to the south. Mr. 4 and Miss Merry Christmas went after them.

Two more ducks went off to the west. Mr.1 and his partner Miss Double Finger followed them.

And two more ran straight, running over Mr. 2 and Miss Hallows Eve.

"Well, we'll be heading to the south-west gate!" a girl's voice said.

The agents were quick to pursue them.

As the dust cleared from in front of the city, one more duck and a camel emerged from behind a rock and set off towards the no-man's land between the city and the approaching Rebel Army.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Hawke and Usopp approached the south-west gate.

"Are you okay, Hawke?" asked Usopp, looking over at her.

"I'm fine," Hawke smiled, "But how are you doing?"

The sniper was shaking so hard in his saddle that Hawke thought he might fall off.

"Come on, Usopp!" exclaimed Hawke, "We have to be convincing. Vivi's depending on us!"

"Right," replied Usopp, trying to stop his knees from shaking.

They approached the gate and raced up the steps.

There were some guards at the entrance, but they seemed to recognize the ducks and let them through.

"We don't have time to stop," said Hawke and they sped into the city.

Hawke looked behind them. Mr. 2 and Miss Hallows Eve were still giving chase.

They sped through the city, winding in and out of alleys, finally stopping and waiting for their pursuers to catch up.

"I am not letting you get awaaay!" shouted Mr. 2, rounding the corner.

"I'm so glad you decided to follow me," said Usopp, in a high pitched, feminine voice.

"I'm the princess," said Hawke, doing her best Vivi impression.

_He's good at that,_ Hawke smiled to herself, glancing over at Usopp.

The two agents stopped and exchanged confused looks.

"What?" snapped Mr. 2.

The scout and the sniper lowered their hoods.

"To bad! You lose!" they laughed at their pursuers.


	26. Chapter 26: Hawke vs Miss Hallows Eve

**Chapter 26**

**Into Battle!: Hawke v.s. Miss Hallows Eve  
**

Hawke and Usopp stood facing their enemies.

"Well isn't this annoying," spat Miss Hallows Eve, tossing her head.

Her purple hair was pulled back in two pony tails and she was wearing a skin tight pink unitard.

Mr. 2 was glaring at them, his two swan-shaped epaulettes quivering.

"I'll show you what happens to those who make a fool out of Baroque Works," he snarled.

"I'll take the pathetic dancer," laughed Miss Hallows Eve, pointing at Hawke.

The scout swallowed.

"Fine by me," said Mr. 2, "I'll show you my kenpo!"

He lunged at Usopp.

"Watch out!" Hawke shouted.

But the sniper couldn't dodge in time. Mr. 2's kick landed square in his chest and he crumbled immediately.

"Usopp!" Hawke cried as she watched her friend hit the ground.

"Ha! This is laughable," cackled Miss Hallows Eve, "But you shouldn't take your eyes off your opponent."

Hawke whirled around and was met with the agent's foot shooting towards her. She bent back as far in her saddle as she could, and Miss Hallows Eve shot over her, barley brushing Hawke's nose with her legs.

The agent landed and spun around.

"Oh, so you're not as weak as that poor excuse for a man," she laughed, "Well then, come and play with me, little dancer. I'm going to wipe you all over this pathetic city."

She spun around again and ran off down the street.

"Wh-wait!" shouted Hawke.

She jumped off her duck.

Usopp was struggling to get up and Mr. 2 had backed off.

"Go get Sanji, Usopp needs help!" she told the duck, remembering that Sanji and Chopper were the closest.

Hawke ran over and helped her friend to his feet.

"Come on, Usopp," she said, "You can take this guy. Hit him with your firebird stars or something!"

"Right," gasped Usopp, fumbling with his slingshot.

He shakily loaded it and aimed at Mr. 2.

"Are you ready to be taken down?" Usopp threatened.

"Oh, I'm so scared," the okama feigned a swoon.

"Go to hell!" shouted Usopp.

Hawke jumped back as the sniper let loose his shot.

The bead exploded in flames as soon as it was released and hit the agent square in the face.

"Nice come back, Usopp!" shouted Hawke, "I'm going after Miss Hallows Eve. Hang in there!"

She spun around and ran back down the street.

As she tore through Alubarna, Hawke kept scanning the alleyways as she passed them. But there was no sign of the Baroque Works agent.

"Where did you go?" she muttered, running past an abandoned café.

Hawke rounded a corner and stopped short. She heard a noise coming from an alley way off to her right.

"Stop moving you little birdie," taunted a woman's voice.

_That must be her_, thought Hawke.

Hawke skidded to a stop and peered into the alley.

Miss Hallows Eve was facing away from her, towards the wall of a building.

The wall had large chunks of rock embedded in it and there was a small black bird standing on one of them. One of its wings was sticking out at an odd angle and it was hopping nervously from foot to foot.

Miss Hallows Eve held up her hand and aimed it at the bird.

"Now don't you move this time," she muttered.

As Hawke watched, a large boulder seemed to come out of Miss Hallows Eve's hand and flew at the bird.

With a frantic chirp, the little creature tried to fly away. But it only managed to fall off the rock it was standing on and hit the ground.

The boulder slammed into the wall and stuck there.

Hawke's eyes flashed and she snuck into the alley.

"Stupid animal!" retorted Miss Hallows Eve, "If you'd just done what I told you, you wouldn't be hopping around like a pitiful little bug. You'd be dead! And why is that girl taking so long?!"

"Leave him alone!" shouted Hawke as she dove in front of the agent, shielding the little bird.

Miss Hallows Eve was taken by surprise and took a step back, hesitating.

Hawke used this time to scoop up the bird and hide him in her robes.

"How dare you torture an innocent animal for your own amusement?" Hawke seethed.

Miss Hallows Eve laughed.

"Well, well, well," she cackled, "I've been waiting for you. If you'd have been faster, I wouldn't have had to kill my boredom by testing my aim on that bird."

She held up her hand and produced another rock out of her palm.

"So you can make rocks?" asked Hawke, taking two knives out of her robes, "That's not very impressive."

Miss Hallows Eve glared at her.

"I ate the Mountain-Mountain Fruit," she declared, throwing the rock up and catching it in her hand, "And you will feel my power very soon."

Hawke brandished her knives.

"A person who harms innocent creatures is no more worthy of power than the dirt under my feet," Hawke said in a low voice.

"Big talk from a common whore!" shouted Miss Hallows Eve.

She drew back her hands and threw the rock at Hawke.

Hawke dodged and sliced through it with one of her knives as it flew by.

"What did you call me?" shouted the scout.

Miss Hallows Eve was still glaring at her.

"You are nothing but a lowly dancer," she said, her voice was scathing, "You charmed him with your stupid show and now he doesn't even notice me!"

"Who?" retorted Hawke, "Crocodile?!"

"How dare you speak his name!" cried Miss Hallows Eve and she launched her attack.

She raised her right hand and shot many small rock darts at Hawke. And with her left, she created a boulder larger than Hawke's head and threw it.

Hawke tried to dodge the darts. She turned and bent herself down, hoping they would fly over her.

But two of the darts hit her back, skimming along it and tearing holes in her robes.

The boulder hit her shoulder and knocked her down.

Miss Hallows Eve sprang on her and tore at her hood, picking Hawke up by her hair.

"I never want to hear his name from your filthy lips again!" she whispered threateningly into Hawke's ear.

Hawke gasped for air. Her head was spinning. She jabbed out with her knife and felt it make contact.

Miss Hallows Eve let her go and started shrieking.

Hawke jumped up and steadied herself. She looked over at the agent.

The woman was bent double, clutching her face.

"What have you done!" she screeched and launched herself at Hawke, clawing at the air.

Hawke gasped when she saw the agent's face.

Her knife had indeed struck its target.

There was a large oozing gash down the left side of her enemies face. Starting from above her eyebrow and ending at the bottom of her cheek.

"Now you can match your pretend lover," Hawke sneered, backing away.

Hawke threw a knife at Miss Hallows Eve, hitting her in her side.

The woman let out another screech as she yanked at the blade that was embedded between her ribs.

"No!" she shouted, "You can't hurt me! I am a mountain!"

"Ever heard of sea prism stone," mumbled Hawke.

She retreated and used the boulders stuck in the wall to climb up to the roof.

_I need to get to the clock tower,_ she thought.

"Come back here!" Miss Hallows Eve shouted after her.

Hawke looked over her shoulder and saw that the agent was eye level with her.

"What?" she gasped.

Her enemy had made rock columns grow out of her feet. She was standing in front of Hawke on huge rock stilts.

"You're not getting away from me!" shouted Miss Hallows Eve, "I will make you pay!"

She raised both her hands and made it rain rock darts on Hawke.

But the scout was better prepared this time. She spun herself, holding her knives out. The darts were either deflected or cut and she wasn't scratched.

When the barrage stopped, Hawke stopped her spin and immediately ran towards Miss Hallows Eve.

She jumped off the building and slashed at the agent's legs. This made the woman tilt back. Hawke landed on one of the stilts and jumped off again, using her legs to push as hard as she could.

Miss Hallows Eve toppled backwards with a shriek.

_She sure is loud, _thought Hawke as she landed back on the roof.

But Miss Hallows Eve wasn't going to go down that easy.

She jumped off her stilts, letting them fall to the ground, and sprouted new ones to keep her balance.

As she did this, she created boulders in both of her hands.

Hawke was running back across the roof. She saw the shadows of the rocks as they fell towards her.

Turning around quickly, she drew her sword and sliced through both of them before sheathing it, turning around continuing to run.

Miss Hallows Eve used her stilts to run up right behind Hawke. She created two large boulders with spikes of rock protruding from them and dropped them down on the fleeing scout.

"Take this, little girl," she snarled and created two more boulders in the same way.

Hawke looked up and gasped.

She lurched out of the way of the falling rocks. The first two missed her by a hair. But she wasn't so lucky the second time.

The spikes on the falling boulder snagged Hawke's cloak and yanked her to the ground.

She tried to get up, but she was pinned down.

Miss Hallows Eve cackled as she jumped off her stilts and onto the roof.

"Did you actually think you could defeat me?" she sneered, "I am so much better than you!"

Hawke struggled to pull her robes free.

"What did he see in you?" scoffed her tormentor, "You're pathetic. If I bring back your body and tell him how little of a fight you gave, he'll forget about you in an instant."

"What makes you think he'll give you any more attention than he did before?" asked Hawke, trying to buy herself some time.

"Because he'll see that I'm stronger than his little pet here," she sneered, "I'll be worthy of him."

Hawke looked up at her. The scar on her face made her smile look more like a grimace.

"Are you sure he'll see you the same way?" she asked, bringing her finger up and tracing it down her cheek.

Miss Hallows Eve stared at her, then raised her own hand to her face. She touched her wound and immediately snatched her hand back.

"You worthless piece of trash!" she shrieked.

She drew back her hand and solidified it into rock. Hawke saw what was coming and tried to dodge, but her cloak stopped her.

Miss Hallows Eve slapped Hawke across the face with her rock hand.

Hawke cried out in pain. She felt her jaw crack and saw spots dancing in front of her eyes.

"You monster!" shouted Miss Hallows Eve, "You've turned my beautiful looks into the ugliest face in the world!"

She hit Hawke again.

Hawke whimpered and reached for her knives.

"Oh no you don't!" yelled Miss Hallows Eve, "You can't prick me with your little butter knives anymore!"

She kicked Hawke's hand, causing her to let go of her knives. They flew across the roof and fell off the other side.

"No!" cried Hawke, wincing at the pain that this cause her.

Miss Hallows Eve laughed.

"It's all over for you now," she sneered and raised her hand over Hawke's head.

Hawke watched as a boulder started to take shape in Miss Hallows Eve's outstretched palm. She tried to pull herself free, but it was no use.

She closed her eyes and waited helplessly for the rock to fall.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Going back in time a bit, we return to when Hawke had picked up the bird.

The small black bird she had rescued was a Desert Whiskey Jack, a species found only in the Alabasta Kingdom.

It is an elusive creature and builds its nests in the hollowed out bricks of abandoned buildings.

This little male had been searching for twigs to bring back to his mate when Miss Hallows Eve had attacked him. She had hit his wing with a small pebble and sprained it, making it impossible for him to fly away from her.

However, it was only a pulled muscle.

When Hawke had scooped him up, he had taken refuge inside a pocket of her robes. Her cloak was bulky enough that her rapid movements were cushioned and he hadn't been jerked around. He had had enough time to rest and stretch his wing.

As Hawke had climbed up the building towards the roof, the bird had flitted out of her cloak and flown away.

But he had not abandoned the girl.

This little whiskey jack knew who he had just met. He also knew that she was in trouble.

He knew he must help his Princess in any way he could. And he had a plan.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Hawke waited for the blow to fall.

She waited.

Then she waited some more.

Frowning, she opened her eyes.

The sight that greeted her eyes made her gasp.

Miss Hallows Eve was gone.

Her two stilts of rock were all that remained, hovering over Hawke.

Hawke looked up to the sky. She let out a second gasp.

Miss Hallows Eve was flying through the air!

"What's going on?!" gasped Hawke.

There was a layer of black outlining the agent's figure.

Hawke squinted. The outline was moving!

"Birds?!" exclaimed Hawke, "Whiskey jacks?!"

There were hundreds of whiskey jacks clutching at Miss Hallows Eve's unitard, hair and skin. They had picked her up and were flying high up into the sky with her.

"Where did they come from?" Hawke whispered.

She moved to get up and realised that her robes were free.

Turning around, Hawke saw that the spiked boulder that was pinning her down had been rolled back. There were birds on every spike, flapping as hard as they could, pulling it off her.

"Oh my," said Hawke, staring, "Thank you all so much!"

"It's our pleasure, Princess," said a small flock as they flew past, dropping her fallen knives at her feet.

Hawke picked up her weapons.

A sudden shriek drew her attention upwards again.

"Get off me you damn birds!" Miss Hallows Eve yelled, flailing her arms around, trying to brush off the birds.

She had turned her entire body to stone, making her too heavy for the birds to hold up.

The woman started falling towards the ground.

Hawke had a sudden idea.

She brought out all her knives and started throwing them at Miss Hallows Eve as she fell.

The blades bounced off the agent's solid rock body, Hawke made sure that the parts containing the sea prism stone didn't hit their mark.

"Your desperation is pitiful," taunted Miss Hallows Eve.

Hawke ignored her and kept throwing, making sure she missed.

"Really," said Miss Hallows Eve, "You aren't hitting me at all. I must have hit you quite hard."

"Shut up!" shouted Hawke, drawing out her sword and aiming.

She threw her sword like a spear. It was a direct hit at Miss Hallows Eve's chest. But her sword didn't have any sea prism stone in it, so it only scratched the rock.

The agent cackled.

"You are the worst pirate I have ever seen," she sniggered, and she saw that Hawke was out of weapons and turned her body back to normal.

"Is that so?" asked Hawke as she retreated to the edge of the roof.

"Of cour—," Miss Hallows Eve started to say.

Then her body made contact with the roof with a sickening thud. The roof shook from the impact and cracks appeared around the shattered body of the agent. Hawke balanced on the edge of the building as the roof caved in.

She crouched down and shielded her eyes from the flying shrapnel.

The dust and debris slowly settled.

Hawke looked down into the rubble. She could see Miss Hallows Eve's body among the rocks. As Hawke watched, the agent started to move her arms.

"Oh no you don't," gasped Hawke.

She jumped down and planted her feet squarely into the back of Miss Hallows Eve's head, slamming it further into the ground.

The agent's struggles stopped immediately.

Hawke sighed in relief.

"It worked," she gasped, staggering back outside and sinking to her knees.

Her head was still spinning, but at least now she could take a moment to get her bearings.

Hawke had figured that if she could distract the agent and get her to keep her whole body as rock right up until the moment before she landed, she would forget how far she was from the ground and turn back into a normal person. She had used her weapons to distract Miss Hallows Eve from landing properly.

_It was a real long shot,_ she thought, _thank goodness it worked._

Hawke looked up and watched the flocks of birds soaring overhead.

One bird detached itself from the flock and fluttered down to where Hawke was sitting.

"Are you hurt, Princess?" it asked.

"She really got me good," Hawke winced, rubbing her head and jaw.

She thought she might have fractured something, her jaw cracked every time she moved it. She could already feel a bruise forming.

"Thank you for what you did. You saved me," she mumbled.

"It is an honour to hear you say that, Princess," replied the bird, "I am forever indebted to you."

Hawke blinked.

"Oh," she realised, "You're the poor one that she was throwing rocks at, aren't you?"

The bird hopped up onto her knee.

"Yes, Princess," said the bird, "This is the least I could do to repay you."

Hawke smiled and stood up.

She started to gather up her scattered weapons.

As she collected her sword and tied it around her waist, she turned to the bird that was still perched on the edge of the roof.

"Why do you call me that?" she asked.

The bird cocked his head to the side.

"Because you are the Princess," he said, matter-of-factly.

"But I'm not," objected Hawke as she picked up some of her knives, "I'm definitely not a princess. Vivi's the princess."

"Yes you are," said the little whiskey jack, flying over and landing on her shoulder, "You are the daughter of our ruler, the Sky Spirit."

"What?" said Hawke, "The Sky Spirit?"

"Every thousand years, the Sky Spirit takes a human form and chooses a human to bear his child," explained the bird.

"Umm," Hawke protested, "I don't know who my parents are, but I'm sure they were both completely human. No spirits involved."

"Nevertheless," said the bird, "You are the Princess."

"That doesn't make any sense," Hawke sighed as she collected the last of her weapons.

Just then she heard a sudden roaring sound.

She turned her attention to the clock tower. There was a huge dust cloud hovering over it. And the sounds of a battle could be heard.

"Oh no!" she exclaimed, "Looks like Vivi couldn't stop the rebels outside the city!"

She glanced back towards the clock tower.

_That's our meeting place,_ she thought, _I'll get there faster over the rooftops._

Hawke ran to the edge, jumped over to the next building and ran across it.

The whiskey jack flew up by her ear.

"We will be close if you need more assistance, Princess," it said.

"Thank you," gasped Hawke.

She made for the tower as fast as she could. Her crew needed her, she could feel it.


	27. Chapter 27: The Dark Angel Rises

**Chapter 27**

**The Dark Angel Rises**

Hawke stopped on the edge of a building that was overlooking the central square. She had managed to get right up beside the clock tower.

She scanned the scene below for her friends.

The square was filled with swirling clouds of sand. Hawke pulled up her hood, trying to keep the dust out of her eyes. She had to squint to make out the forms of the people that filled the square.

There were soldiers fighting rebels everywhere. The sand storm was causing a lot of chaos because it was hard for anybody to see who they were fighting.

_Well this isn't good at all_, she thought worriedly.

Just then she spotted Nami's orange hair near the base of the steps to the palace. Squinting, she could make out Sanji and Zoro, with Usopp and Chopper beside them. Then something else caught her eye: a red shirt and a yellow straw hat.

"He's okay!" she gasped, "Luffy! Everyone!"

Hawke quickly climbed down the building and race through the fray to get to her crew.

"Guys!" she shouted, coming up behind them.

"There you are Hawke-san," said Sanji, turning around, "Are you hurt my dear?"

"Hawke-san," Vivi smiled at her, "Everyone is safe."

"Hey Vivi," Hawke panted, catching her breath.

Nami and Vivi looked a little worse for wear, but they seemed fine otherwise. Sanji was supporting Usopp, who was covered in bandages and leaning heavily on Chopper, who seemed to be steady enough.

Hawke glanced towards Zoro.

Her eyes widened.

"You look terrible!" she gasped.

His waist and chest were slashed and blood was still oozing down his shirt.

Zoro looked down at himself.

"I'll be fine," he shrugged, "And you look a little beat up yourself."

Sanji rounded on him.

"You asshole!" he snapped, "How the hell did Nami-san get hurt! I'll kill you!"

"She's fine," snapped Zoro, bending over to catch his breath.

Luffy, who had his arms stretched up to the castle wall, suddenly spoke.

"Sorry, guys…" he said, "I went and lost to him."

The crew turned their heads towards the captain.

"That's why… That's why I won't lose again!" he muttered, "You guys take care of the rest!"

Hawke smiled.

"Go on," said Zoro, "Get out of here."

"If you can't beat him, then who the hell is supposed to!" shouted Usopp.

"I'm finishing this," Luffy said, uncharacteristically serious, "All of it!"

"Yosh!" shouted the crew as their captain shot up to meet his enemy.

"Bastard!" was Luffy's rallying cry as he flew upwards.

Hawke let her gaze follow him up. She squinted at the top of the wall, there was someone standing on the edge. She caught the glint of a golden hook.

"Crocodile!" she gasped.

"That bastard's gunna get what's coming to him now," muttered Zoro, "Luffy's all fired up."

Hawke looked at the swordsman.

"You shouldn't continue fighting like that," she said anxiously.

"What are you talking about?" scoffed Zoro, straightening up, "I'm ready for anything."

She sighed and gave him a worried look.

She didn't want him to get any more wounded than he already was. But she knew that there was nothing she could say that would make him not fight.

"Just be careful," she muttered.

Zoro blinked and nodded.

"Is your face okay?" he asked, looking at her with concern.

Hawke felt around her jaw. Her skin was all swollen and tender. She was still wincing every time she spoke.

"I think I might have cracked something," she mumbled, "I must look like a blowfish."

"It's all black and purple," gasped Nami.

Suddenly Hawke caught sight of a man she didn't recognize, but he'd been standing with them the whole time. She was just about to ask who he was when Vivi spoke up.

"There's no time for this! We have to hurry!" she shouted, "There's a bomb hidden somewhere in the city and it's going to be set off in ten minutes!"

"What?!" yelled Nami, "Where is it? How do you know?"

"I was up at the palace," panted Vivi, "Crocodile and Miss All Sunday were there. They had my father crucified against the building," she paused, "Kohza, the leader of the Rebel Army, showed up too," she added.

"What did you say?!" exclaimed Usopp, "The squares gunna be bombed in ten minutes?!"

"When the square is bombed, no one within the five-kilometer blast range will be left alive," Vivi's shoulders shook as she spoke, "That's what Crocodile said."

"The Rebel and Royal armies will both be wiped out," gasped Chopper.

"Right," said Zoro, "Let's search for the bombers."

The crew looked over at him.

"We have to stop them from setting it off!" snapped the swordsman.

"How are we going to find them?" panicked Usopp.

"And in just ten minutes?!" worried Nami.

"We don't have time to think about it!" Hawke stepped forward.

"She's right," said Vivi, "I think the bombers are most likely to be close to the square."

"We've got to split up," said Usopp, "And get above this sand cloud."

The crew took off in different directions.

Hawke ran down the left side of the square.

She looked into every building she passed.

_Where could they hide a bomb big enough to blow away the entire square_? she thought_, These rooms are way too small._

Hawke ran down a side street and scanned the rooftops and windows.

Every street she ran down, she searched every building. But her searches turned up nothing.

And the fighting out in the square was getting more and more fierce. Hawke could hear the shouts of the men, the ring of swords and gunshots.

_We need to stop this_, she thought frantically, _we only have five minutes left!_

A sudden idea popped into her head. These buildings were way too small! She needed to look for something big, something with enough space to hold a huge bomb.

_Maybe it's there!_ She thought, something clicking in her brain.

Just then there was a sudden hiss and a huge streak of red shot into the sky a little ways off to her right.

"That's Usopp," she muttered, "They've found the bombers!"

Hawke spun around and sprinted off in the direction of the flare.

Rounding the corner of a building, she saw Vivi and Usopp standing in the middle of the street.

Hawke ran up to them.

"It has to be there," Vivi was saying, "If the sandstorm was part of his plan, then they would need to be somewhere where they could still see to aim at the square. And it has to be a space large enough to hold a canon which isn't visible from the sky!"

"The clock tower?" Hawke panted, which is where she had guessed the bomb might be.

"There's no other place I can think of!" cried Vivi, nodding.

"Okay," stuttered Usopp, "I'll leave a message for the others when they get here."

"I'll go on ahead," said Vivi, sprinting away.

"Me too," said Hawke, following the princess.

"Wait for me!" shouted Usopp.

The trio sped through the streets and headed towards the clock tower.

Suddenly, a bunch of shadows loomed out of the sand cloud in front of them.

"We found the Princess!" a gruff voice laughed, "And she showed us right where to find her!"

"There's still Baroque Works members left!" gasped Vivi.

"Arg!" yelled Usopp, "The bad guys followed my message too!"

"Get back Vivi!" shouted Hawke, unsheathing her sword and jumping into the group of agents in front of them.

Hawke slashed at the billions and drove them away from the princess.

Usopp was trying his "psychology" fighting style and was scratching his finger nails across a chalk board while shouting insults. It was surprisingly affective.

Between them, they cleared the way and grabbed Vivi and continued on through.

"Run!" shouted Usopp, "Keep running Vivi!"

They were making their way closer to the clock tower, but the billions were in hot pursuit. Hawke and Usopp were fending them off, but they were greatly outnumbered.

Suddenly, many figures emerged from the dust cloud and jumped onto the billions, defeating them all in one fell swoop.

Hawke stopped running.

As the dust cleared around the group, a woman and her marines were revealed.

"Th-thank you!" stuttered Usopp.

Hawke stared warily. This woman looked uncannily like the girl in Zoro's picture, the one that was supposed to have died.

"We'll cover you," the woman said, "Please stop the bombing!"

"Thank you," said Vivi, and she began running.

Hawke gave the marine one last curious glance and then followed Vivi.

The clock tower finally came into view.

"We only have two minutes!" shouted Hawke up to Vivi.

Suddenly, a voice called out behind them.

"Vivi, Usopp, Hawke!"

They turned.

"Nami-san, Tony-kun!" exclaimed Vivi.

"What's going on?" asked Nami, jumping off Chopper, whom she had been riding, "The marines just helped us find you."

"Have you located the bombers?" asked Chopper.

"They must be in there!" said Vivi, pointing up to the face of the clock.

"It's up there?" Nami gasped.

Hawke's gaze followed Vivi's pointing finger up to the clock tower.

"If only Pell were here, he could stop the bomb," said Vivi, glancing up at the sky.

Hawke turned to her.

"Who's Pell?" she asked.

"The man who was with us before," said Vivi distractedly, "I don't see him."

"Okay," said Hawke, "As long as he's on our side."

"We'll have to find a way to get up there ourselves," said Chopper.

"The stairs are the only way," said Usopp, pointing.

Just then they heard a voice above them.

"Oi! Nami-san! Vivi-san! Hawke-chan!"

They looked up to see Sanji leaning out of a window above them.

"Why are you up there?!" shouted Usopp.

"Because you left a freaking message for me!" shouted Sanji in return, "It said "Clock Tower" so I started making my way up. Where are the bombers?"

"The top!" screamed Usopp, gesturing wildly, "They're at the top! Go kick their asses!"

Just then another voice came down from the clock tower building.

"Oi, I've been looking for you guys."

"Zoro!" shouted Sanji, "You're here too!?"

"The marines kept saying "Go north! Go north!", so I went up this building," the swordsman shouted down.

""North" and "Up" are completely different!" shouted Sanji.

Hawke stared up at the two men.

_Zoro is really pathetic when it comes to directions,_ she thought.

"Good job guys!" shouted Usopp, "Just keep heading up and kick the bombers asses!"

"They can't" said Vivi suddenly, "There isn't access to the room behind the clock from where they are. Other than from the sky, the only way to get there is through the first floor. Usopp was right, the stairs are our only way."

She made to start up the stairs.

"Hang on Vivi!" said Hawke excitedly, "I have an idea!"

The princess skidded to a halt.

Suddenly, there was a loud groaning noise.

The crew looked up. The face of the clock was slowly opening.

Two figures were standing in the opening.

"Who are they?" muttered Nami.

"Mr. 7 and Miss Father's Day!" gasped Vivi.

As they watched, the agents lit a match and held it to a fuse.

_Thirty seconds!_ Thought Hawke, _there's no time!_

She ran over and put her hands under Vivi's arms.

"I can get you up there," said Hawke, unfurling her wings.

They slid easily through the slits that Miss Hallows Eve's knife had made in her cloak earlier.

Vivi glanced over her shoulder.

"Hawke-san!" She gasped.

Just then, the rebels and soldiers caught sight of the pirates and started attacking them.

"Go, Hawke-san!" shouted Sanji, jumping down from his window, and landing behind her.

Hawke turned to fly up, but she was greeted by a sword pointing at her face.

"I've got you, you stupid pir—," the man holding the sword stopped.

Hawke blinked.

"Bran!" she exclaimed nervously.

"Dark Angel?" Bran gaped at her.

His bandana was caked with sand and was pulled down around his neck.

"How did you get here?"

"I can't talk now Bran," said Hawke, "I need to get up there," she gestured to the tower with her head.

Bran looked up, then back at Hawke. His face showed great indecision.

"I can't let you go, Angel," he said with pity in his eyes.

"Bran," said Hawke, fixing him with her stare, "There's a bomb up there, and it will kill all of us if you don't let me go now."

Bran's eyes widened.

"What?!" he exclaimed, "Why would there be a bomb?"

"Bran, please," begged Hawke, "Or everyone here: Tank, you, and me, everyone will die!"

Bran bit his lip.

Hawke looked up at him. _Fifteen seconds!_

"Please," she whispered.

He closed his eyes and clenched his fist around his sword. Hawke watched as the blade was slowly lowered away from her face.

"Thank you," she whispered.

Bran gave her a weak smile. Then his eyes focused on something behind her and his face became serious.

"I'll defeat the cook instead," he said and ran past Hawke.

Hawke let a small smile lift her lips as she took off.

She soared up to the open clock face and hovered in front of the opening.

There was a huge cannon taking up most of space. Looking into it, they could see a giant bomb inside.

Mr. 7 and Miss Father's Day were sneering at them from the opening.

"Well, well if it isn't Miss Wednesday," laughed Miss Father's Day, "She betrayed the organisation!"

They pointed their guns at the girls.

"Well this is an unexpected bonus!" Miss Father's Day laughed.

They fired.

Hawke managed to dodge their first round by suddenly dropping in altitude. She flew up again and readied to get Vivi into the clock tower.

"Seven seconds!" Nami shouted up from the square.

"Here we go Vivi!" shouted Hawke, picking up her speed.

"Give it your all, Hawke-san!" Vivi replied.

"Running away?" laughed Miss Father's Day as Hawke flew higher, "It's futile!"

They let off another shot.

Hawke let out a cry as the bullets made contact.

"Hawke!" shouted Zoro.

The scout clenched her teeth and catapulted herself into the opening, throwing Vivi up and over the two agents as Hawke bowled into them.

The agents were flung out into the square and Hawke landed heavily on the floor of the clock tower. She raised her head.

"Go Vivi!" she shouted through clenched teeth.

She could see the princess bolt towards the lit fuse. It was about to fire!

Time stood still.

Then Hawke saw the spark of the fuse fall to the ground, detaching itself from the string. The fuse hung limp. The bomb didn't go off.

There was no movement in the tower for a few long seconds.

"Vivi?" Hawke gasped weakly, pushing herself up.

Then she let out a whimper of pain and held her left side. Looking down, she saw a blood stain forming through her robes.

"Damn," she muttered as she went down on one knee, "So they did get me."

"Hawke-san!" screeched Vivi.

Hawke raised her head and saw Vivi standing at the head of the cannon.

"Everyone!" she screamed down into the square, "The bomb has a timer! It's still going to explode!"

"What?!" Hawke gasped.

She stood, ignoring the pain, and ran over to stand with Vivi.

They stared into the cannon in horror.

The bomb was sitting quietly, with a small timer placed on its front. Positioned almost as if to mock them for thinking they'd won their fight to stop it.

"That… that man is evil," seethed Hawke.

She could almost see Crocodile's gloating face staring down at them, laughing.

Vivi let out a strangled scream and began beating her fists against the cannon.

"You made us search for the cannon!" she shouted, "You even told us when they were going to fire it…!"

She sank to her knees. Hawke knelt down beside her.

"Just how much do you have to humiliate me before you are satisfied!" she sobbed, "How much do you have to sneer at me before you're happy?"

She raised her head.

"CROCODILE!" she screamed, her voice strangled and cracking.

Hawke put her hand on Vivi's shoulder.

"He hasn't won yet, Princess," she said shakily, "Luffy is going to beat Crocodile, and we still have a little time."

However, Hawke was starting to panic herself. She couldn't see any way of stopping the timer.

"You're quite right," said a voice from above them.

Both girls looked up.

Vivi sprang to her feet

"Pell!" she cried and threw her arms around a man who was standing on the edge of the tower opening.

The man hugged her back and stepped down into the room.

"This place brings back memories doesn't it?" he asked Vivi quietly.

"Pell!" exclaimed Vivi.

She began speaking very quickly, telling him about the bomb.

Hawke recognized him as the man who was with them at the base of the palace steps.

_He seems to be Vivi's friend,_ she thought, _but I don't think he's listening to her._

Pell had turned his head and was looking at Hawke.

"Who is your wise friend?" he asked.

Vivi stopped talking and looked over.

"Hawke," she said hesitantly, "She's one of the Strawhat pirates who've been helping me."

Pell held out his hand.

"It is an honour to meet you," he said as Hawke shook his hand.

"Umm, thank you," stuttered she, rustling her still outstretched wings, "But do we really have time for this?"

Pell smiled, eyeing her wings.

"You are correct," he said.

He made to turn away, but then turned back.

"Hawke-san," he said suddenly, "Please help Princess Vivi restore the peace we once had in this kingdom."

Hawke blinked.

"O-Of course," she stuttered, "That's what our crew has been doing this whole time."

"It is important that _you _help, though," he said quietly.

Then he turned to Vivi.

"I…," he began, "Devoting my life to the service of the Nefeltari Family… fills my heart with such everlasting pride."

Vivi stared at him

Suddenly, before their eyes, he transformed into a falcon and leapt onto the canon, grasping the bomb with his talons and pulling it out.

The two girls stared in horror as he rose into the sky.

Vivi ran to the edge and reached up after him.

Hawke followed and put her hand on Vivi's shoulder, making sure she didn't fall.

"Pell!" Vivi cried out, agony clearly showing in her voice and her face.

The sky was suddenly filled with blinding light and the sound of a huge explosion.

Both girls brought their hands to their mouths in an attempt to silence their cries.

The shockwave blasted through the square, crumbling buildings and breaking windows. Its force was so strong that it broke the sandstorm swirling around the square and scattered the sand.

Vivi and Hawke stared up into the sky in horror, still not believing what had just happened in front of them.

A tear fell down Vivi's cheek.

"Pell…," she whispered.

Hawke took a breath.

"He…," she stuttered, trying to arrange her thoughts, "He protected your country… to the end Vivi. He really loved you and the King."

A sudden roar filled the square.

Vivi sank to her knees and looked out over the plaza.

"Why are they still fighting?" she asked frantically.

Hawke looked down into the square.

Some people had stopped fighting when the gust had blown the sand away and were looking up at the sky. But the majority of the people had barley given the explosion a second thought. The battle raged on.

"Stop it!" screamed Vivi into the square, "Stop fighting! We're safe now! Stop it!"

She pounded her hands against the ground.

"Please stop fighting! Stop fighting! Please stop fighting!" she continued, her anguish pouring out with every word.

"Vivi, don't stand so close to the edge," said Hawke in a low voice.

She could see that Vivi was on the verge of a break down and she didn't want her to fall.

"Stop! Stop this fighting!" Vivi kept screaming.

Hawkes mind was racing, trying to find a way to stop the fighting.

Just then, the ground started to shake.

Up in the tower, Vivi and Hawke felt the tremors and looked out.

"Look over there!" cried Hawke, pointing to a building that was falling down.

"What's happening?" gasped Vivi.

As they watched, more buildings began tumbling down in that section of the city. Large chunks of rocks flew in every direction.

Suddenly an object was shot upwards. It flew higher and higher, tumbling through the air. Hawke saw a fur lined cape flying in the wind and the glint of a golden hook.

"Crocodile!" she gasped.

Vivi looked up.

"Luffy did it!" she shouted happily.

Hawke took Vivi's hand and smiled.

"He said he would kick Crocodiles ass didn't he?" she laughed.

Vivi gave her a wide smile.

"It's over," she sighed, "He's been defeated."

"Yes," replied Hawke.

Vivi looked out into the plaza. Her face fell immediately.

"How can they still be fighting?!" she cried frantically, "It's over! There's no reason to fight!"

She sank to her knees.

"Even when there's no one left to fight…" she slammed her fist onto the floor, "Please… stop this bloodshed."

Hawke watched as Vivi's shoulders shook with emotion.

"Stop all this killing!" Vivi screamed at the crowd.

"We need to get their attention," muttered Hawke, thinking as fast as she could, "Something so big no one could ignore it."

Hawke snapped her fingers.

"Vivi!" she said, putting her hand on the girl's shoulder, "I have an idea."

"Really?" asked Vivi weakly.

"Yes," reassured Hawke, "You just stand here where they can all see you. I'm going up there."

She pointed to the roof.

"Okay," said Vivi as she stood.

Hawke flapped her wings and flew out of the opening and up onto the spire that crowned the clock tower.

A shot of pain ripped down her side.

_I can't let that stop me right now_, she told herself through gritted teeth.

She perched on top of the spire, using her outstretched wings to steady herself, and raised her hands, cupping them around her mouth.

"Whiskey Jacks!" she shouted to the sky, "Can you hear me? I need your help!"

She lowered her hands and scanned the horizon. The last clouds of sand were blowing out of view, leaving a blue sky. There were large, dark clouds on the horizon.

_Those look like rain clouds,_ thought Hawke.

She caught sight of a small black bird flying towards her.

"We are here Princess," it said as it fluttered around, trying to hover in front of Hawke's face.

"Thank you for staying close," said Hawke, "My friend and I need to get the attention of all those people fighting down there," she pointed, "I need you to direct their attention to me."

"We will not fail you, Princess," said the whiskey jack, "You shall have their attention."

It flew away, letting out small chirps and clicks as it did so.

Hawke watched as it flew higher and higher, until it was so high up that she couldn't even see it.

_I hope they hurry_, she thought and turned her gaze back to the plaza. She caught sight of Crocodile's body, still twirling through the air. _Luffy must have punched him really hard, _she thought and smiled, _that means he must be okay._

Hawke heard a sharp chirp from above her and looked upwards.

She stared in awe. There were hundreds upon hundreds of whiskey jacks circling the sky over her head where moments before there had been only blue sky.

_All the flocks in Alabasta must be here,_ she thought in amazement.

As Hawke watched, the huge flock dove as one. It headed down to the plaza and spread out, so that every inch of the square was covered by a bird. They flew lower and were actually below head level of most of the soldiers and rebels.

Hawke looked on as the flock flew into the faces of each and every person in the plaza. As the birds passed through the crowd, the men were lowering their weapons and watching after the birds.

_Excellent,_ she thought.

The birds flew through the whole plaza, interrupting every fight and turning every head. When they had reached the far end, they rose as one and flew back towards Hawke.

They formed a dark line and shot over her head, she could feel the wind from all their wings.

Hawke lowered her gaze to the plaza. Every face was now turned towards her.

"Good work," she said to the last of the birds flying overhead, "Thank you."

The birds chirped happily and flew away. One of the stragglers came and perched on her shoulder. Hawke smiled.

She steadied her nerves and raised her arms, gesturing down at the people below her.

"People of Alabasta!" she shouted at the top of her lungs.

A ripple went through the crowd and she could hear some muttering.

"You have been fighting needlessly," continued Hawke, "You have been lead to clash by manipulated reasons!"

She lowered her hands before her and gestured down to the clock face.

"Now hear your Princess!" cried Hawke.

Hawke heard Vivi's voice rise above the noise of the crowd.

"Please hear me!" she was shouting, "Stop all this fighting!"

Suddenly, Crocodile's battered body fell to the ground, right in the middle of the square.

"Crocodile?" muttered the crowd, "Where did he fall from? Why is he here?"

"The nightmare… has finally ended!"Vivi's voice rang out.

The crowd shifted.

"The nightmare is over?" a rebel yelled, "You can't just call this a bad dream!"

The crowd roared in agreement.

"We saw the King attack a village with our own eyes!" someone yelled

"Yeah, and Kohza was shot by the Royal Army!" shouted another.

"How can we accept that for those who have died for this rebellion?"

The crowd began moving and taking up arms again.

Suddenly another voice rang out from the palace wall.

"Throw down your weapons, Royal Army!"

Another voice came up from the crowd.

"And you do the same, Rebel Army."

The crowd parted to reveal a large man with loosely curled hair. Hawke recognized him as Igaram, Vivi's body guard from the Whiskey Peak.

He had a child in his arms.

"That's the boy that the Royal Army beat up!" said a man.

The little boy coughed and spoke.

"No," he said, "Someone else did this to me. After he gave that speech, I saw his face change into someone else's. He wasn't our king!"

The crowd muttered and gasps of disbelief and shock rippled through it.

"That's right," the leader of the Rebel Army, Kohza, spoke up, "This war was a set-up from the beginning."

Hawke looked down and saw the rest of the crew was quietly leaving the square and heading into the city.

_Yes,_ she thought, _we pirates shouldn't be mixed up in this country's affairs._

Igaram spoke up again.

"Everything that has happened to this country, I shall explain to you myself, in full detail. Throw down your weapons, all of you!"

The weapons fell, but Hawke saw that there was about to be an uproar. She glance to the sky and got another idea.

"People of the Alabasta Kingdom!" she shouted again, raising her wings, "You have been through so much suffering. You have been pushed to the brink and have begun fighting amongst yourselves. But behold!" she pointed to the sky, "The rains will fall once more!"

Hawke spread her arms to the sky.

"Let there be peace!" she cried.

The rain clouds that had been on the horizon were now overhead. As Hawke finished her speech, small raindrops started to fall, quickly becoming a down pour.

Cheers and laughter filled the square.

"The rain has finally come!" was shouted through all the streets in the kingdom.

Hawke smiled and flew back down behind the tower. She landed and found her way to where the crew had gathered.

"That was quite the speech," Nami gave her a grin.

"Yeah and where did all those birds come from?" asked Usopp.

"I'm not quite sure," laughed Hawke, "But I needed to get everyone's attention, and it worked."

"Well," said Sanji, "Now that that's settled, we need to find our idiot captain."

The crew began making their way through the city in the direction that Crocodile had been thrown from.

As they walked, Hawke began to feel more and more pain in her side. She kept pressure on her wound with her hand, but she slowly fell behind everyone.

"Are you alright Hawke?" Zoro called back.

The crew stopped.

"I just need a little breather," she said weakly, leaning heavily against the wall of a building.

"Oh, there he is," said Sanji, looking down the street.

The crew turned and saw a man carrying Luffy on his back walking towards them.

The man stopped.

"Who are you?" he asked.

"Ah, that guy on your back…," said Sanji politely, "Thanks for carrying him out of there. He's with us, we'll take him from here."

The man raised his eyebrows.

"So you're the pirates who brought Vivi back to this country," he said.

Sanji looked at him questioningly.

"Who are you?" he asked.

Just then Vivi came running up behind them.

"Papa!" she called.

Hawke pushed herself off the wall and stood as tall as she could. She quickly caught up with the group.

"Papa?" Sanji looked at her questioningly, then jerked his head around to look at the man, "Vivi-chan's father?!"

"You're the King?" asked Zoro.

The man nodded and lowered Luffy off his back.

"I was prepared for death, but he saved me," said the King, "After he fought with Crocodile, he carried us both up to the surface."

He quickly explained what had happened in the fight between Luffy and Crocodile.

"And we don't have to worry about the poison?" asked Usopp.

"No," the King replied, "He has already been given the antidote. But he must be treated for his wounds, as should all of you."

He looked at the rest of the crew.

Zoro sat down against the wall of a building.

"So, Vivi," he grunted, "Hurry up and go already."

"Eh?" Vivi looked over at him.

"Get back to the square," said Zoro.

"That's right," laughed Usopp, "This country's rebellion is finally over. But without the words of the King and the Princess to guide it, it won't be a real ending."

"Right," smiled Vivi, "Then we should all-"

"Vivi-chan," Sanji interrupted her, "You understand right? We're marked men. We ain't gonnna concern ourselves with countries and such."

"We'll go back to the palace when we're ready," smiled Nami.

"We're exhausted," sighed Hawke.

Vivi smiled and returned to the square with her father.

As soon as the two were out of sight, the entire crew collapsed onto the ground.

"We did it," muttered Hawke to the sand.

She reached out her hand and found a boot. Using her remaining strength to turn her head, she saw a green waist band before smiling and dropping off to sleep.


	28. Chapter 28: The Statue

**Chapter 28**

**The Statue**

Hawke awoke to darkness and the gentle sound of rain. She sat up with a groan, her left side ached immensely.

"Hawke-san!" she heard a quiet voice, "Your fever's broken!"

Hawke turned and saw that she was in a room full of beds. Her crew members lay sleeping beside her. She glanced over at Usopp. His butt was sticking up in the air and his head was stuck at an extremely awkward angel.

_How can he sleep like that?_ She thought and smiled.

Then she saw two figures at the end of the row of beds.

"Vivi," she smiled at the princess, "Igaram."

The two returned her smile.

"I was worried you might be one of the more serious cases," said Igaram, coming over to her bed, "But you seem to have recovered miraculously."

"Serious cases?" asked Hawke.

"You and Luffy-san were still unconscious when they brought you to the palace," said Vivi, gesturing at the other beds, "Mr. Bushido said that when they woke up, you were lying in a pool of blood. You had a very high fever, as does Luffy-san."

Hawke glanced over at the captain. He seemed to be sleeping soundly, but she could see beads of sweat on his forehead.

"He'll be okay though, won't he?" she asked, turning back to Vivi.

The princess nodded.

"Tony-kun has recovered," she said, "I've been helping him treat everyone."

"Just you?" asked Hawke, "How long has it been?"

"Only a day since Crocodile was arrested," said Igaram

"Oh, good," sighed Hawke, "It hasn't been long."

She turned to Vivi.

"You should rest," she said with concern, "You're injured too," she noted the bandage on Vivi's forehead.

"I'm fine," reassured the princess, "I was not nearly as injured as you guys."

She lowered her eyes. Hawke could see tears falling into her lap.

"Everyone… you all gave so much to help me… thank you."

Hawke smiled.

"Well, we're nakama aren't we?" she laughed.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

The rain fell for three full days. There was a constant stream of people in the streets, celebrating and filling up all the pots and containers they could with water.

The Strawhat crew took this time to recover from their adventure and relaxed in the palace. The attention of the public hadn't turned to the events that had led to the abrupt end of the civil war yet, they were focused on the return of the rain.

Luffy's body had been battered to the brink during his fights with Crocodile. He stayed unconscious, and the crew kept a watchful eye on him, especially Vivi.

Nami had hurt her foot pretty badly while fighting Miss Doublefinger, but she recovered quickly and was soon walking around normally. Hawke saw the navigator always coming back to their room with more and more books. The King had told her she could take all the books she wanted from the Palace Library since he'd already read them all.

Chopper recovered from his wounds and dehydration on the first day and was then kept busy healing the rest of the crew.

Usopp's whole body had been severely beaten, but he was back to his old self in no time too, thanks to Choppers excellent medical skills.

Zoro and Sanji had severe wounds, but they kept taking off their bandages and leaving the hospital room, making Chopper run around after them trying to reapply them.

Hawke stayed in bed for another day, but her bullet wound was healing fast thanks to Chopper's medicine. After she had been deemed healthy enough to get up, she had walked around with a bandage around her head, which was holding her jaw closed. The right side of her face was covered by a large, hand-shaped bruise, but the swelling had disappeared and even the bruise was fading away quickly. And within three days, she didn't need the head wrap any more. Now that she had almost fully recovered, she was keeping busy by helping Chopper and Vivi take care of the others.

At the moment she was out in the palace garden reapplying bandages to Zoro's torso.

"You really need to stop moving around," she muttered, wrapping the cloth around his chest, "Why on earth were you training with these great gashes in your chest!"

"They should be more flexible so they don't fall off," grunted the swordsman, picking up a piece of the bandage, "And if I don't train, how am I going to get stronger? I can't sit around doing nothing."

"Well, with your injuries, you should be in bed all day," said Hawke, pulling the cloth tight.

"Ouch," snapped Zoro, "Not too hard."

"Oh, so you _can_ feel pain," laughed Hawke.

Zoro frowned at her. But that only made her laugh harder.

"Ouch!" she winced and brought her hand down to her waist.

Her bullet wound was still very sensitive.

"You shouldn't be laughing," snapped Zoro.

Hawke stuck out her tongue at him.

"Well then don't be funny," she teased.

Zoro blushed and frowned.

"You should have told us how injured you were," he muttered, "You lost a lot of blood."

Hawke rolled her eyes. But she was touched by Zoro's concern for her.

"What about you and Sanji," she said, putting the final knot in the cloth and giving Zoro his shirt back, "You guys have wounds that are far worse than mine was."

Zoro grunted.

"Our bodies are used to it," he said, "Yours isn't."

"Well it will be," snapped Hawke in response, "I don't want you or the crew to have to worry about me all the time. I'm going to get stronger."

"We're all going to worry about each other," said Zoro.

Hawke blinked and looked at him.

_That was uncharacteristically open of him,_ she thought as she felt the colour rise in her cheeks, _I like it_.

She gave the swordsman a smile.

He looked down and pulled something out of his belt.

"Vivi gave me this today," he grunted, handing Hawke a newspaper, "She said you should read it."

Hawke unfolded the pages and a sheet of paper fell out. As she bent down to pick it up, Hawke glanced at the front page.

"Oh my!" she gasped and straightened, forgetting the fallen page.

"What is it?" asked Zoro, trying to read it over her shoulder.

Hawke's eyes widened as she read the paper.

She shakily turned and raised the article so Zoro could see it clearly.

The photo covering the top half of the page was a silhouette of the clock tower in the square of Alubarna.

The tower stood out clearly against the blue sky. And on the top, Hawke could be seen standing on the spire, her cloak covering her face and her wings outspread.

The headline read: Mysterious Angel Brings Rain to Alabasta! Is She a Friend or Foe?

"Well that's not bad," muttered Zoro as he read the title.

Hawke shook her head and lowered the paper. She started to read the article out loud.

"In an amazing turn of events this Wednesday, a miraculous stranger almost single-handedly ended the war and brought rains to the parched desert kingdom. This mysterious woman stopped the fighting and gave Princess Vivi the time to explain the truth. No sooner had the real events behind the war been revealed, than the winged woman raised her hands and summoned rain to fall once again.

No one knows who she is or where she came from, but one thing is clear: this dark-winged angel has brought peace to Alabasta. Her current whereabouts are unknown. The Angel went as swiftly as she came, leaving behind many grateful people and a kingdom owing her a great debt.

The World Government has issued a bounty on the Dark Angel's head for undisclosed reasons. They caution the public to stay away from her and that any sightings are to be reported to authorities immediately."

As she finished reading, Zoro bent down and retrieved the paper that had fallen.

"I was wondering if you'd get one," he grunted and held up the page, "You drew a lot of attention to yourself."

Hawke let out a gasp and stepped back.

The paper that had come in the newspaper, and in every newspaper that day, was a wanted poster.

The poster read as follows: "Wanted dead or alive: Dark Angel, 100 000 000 beri" and showed a close up of Hawke's silhouette from atop the clock tower.

"A hundred million is really good for a first bounty," said Zoro, looking back at the poster.

Hawke glared at him.

"This isn't funny Zoro!" she exclaimed, snatching the poster from his hand.

The swordsman winced at her fury.

"Calm down," he snapped, "It isn't like they can recognize you."

Hawke opened her mouth to retort, and then closed it again. She blinked and looked back to the poster.

Zoro was right. The figure on the poster was barely recognizable as a woman, let alone as Hawke. Her face and hair were completely hidden by the shadow of her hood. The only features that were clear were her wings, glistening in the sunlight so every feather was shown in detail.

"You're right," she muttered, "No one could know that that's me, except…"

She trailed off and a worried look crossed her face.

"What do you mean?" asked Zoro, coming closer to her.

"There were the two men who brought me to Crocodile," whispered Hawke, "They would know that that's me, as well as Crocodile and Miss All Sunday."

Zoro's gaze darkened.

"Would they turn you in?" he asked sullenly.

Hawke thought. Her forehead wrinkled as she stared at the ground.

"No," she said finally, "I don't think they would do that. But I can't say the same for Crocodile or Miss All Sunday."

She felt in her heart that Tank and Bran would not give her away as the Dark Angel.

"That name is really sticking, isn't it?" she muttered aloud.

"What?" asked Zoro, flicking some dust off the hilt of his swords.

Hawke blushed.

"Dark Angel," she mumbled, "It was just a nickname, but it seems to have become an alter ego."

"Well I think it suits you," said Zoro.

Hawke glanced over at the swordsman. He was standing with his arms crossed and giving her a small smirk. She blushed again and smiled.

"I missed you a lot," she said, looking over at a brilliantly pink flower patch.

Zoro flushed and took a step back. Then he cleared his throat.

"Well… uh," he stuttered, "I missed you too, I guess, we… we all did, I mean..." he trailed off and spun around, facing away from her.

Hawke looked up and smiled.

"That's nice to hear," she laughed.

For a few moments, they just stood there in silence.

Hawke hesitated. She had a sudden urge to hold the swordsman's hand. She clenched her fist, unsure of what he would think. Then she slowly reached out towards Zoro.

Just then he turned back towards her

"Well, we should probably go back," he said, "Luffy might wake up soon."

Hawke jerked her hand back to her side, hoping he hadn't seen her movements.

"Uh, sure," she smiled enthusiastically.

"You don't have to be so happy all the time," Zoro said, glancing at her.

But Hawke caught the small twitch at the corner of his mouth, revealing his hidden smile.

The pair made their way back to the palace.

As they walked down the hall towards the infirmary, they met up with Usopp and Sanji who had been out shopping for supplies.

"Oi, Hawke," said Usopp, "I was looking around this morning and found something that you gotta see!"

"What is it?" she asked, her curiosity sparked immediately.

"I'll show you right now," said the sniper, handing his bag to the cook, "You can come too, Zoro, if you want."

Zoro grunted and followed Hawke as she joined the sniper and followed him down the hall.

"What did you find?" she asked, "And are you sure you're okay to be moving around like this?"

"I'm perfectly fine," said Usopp, puffing out his chest, "I'm a super-fast healer. It must be because of my warrior's blood."

"Yes, I'm sure that's it," Zoro snapped sarcastically.

Hawke smiled and nudged him with her elbow.

"Be nice," she laughed.

Zoro flinched and frowned, but the frown quickly left his face again.

Hawke could tell he was also curious about what their friend had found.

"It's right over here, I think," said Usopp as they rounded another corner.

Hawke's eyes widened as she took in the room they had entered. There were statues and effigies all over the place. The room was full of monuments dedicated to heroes, kings and queens of the past, and sacred animals.

"This must be a room for giving thanks," said Hawke, approaching a statue of a large jackal, noticing a small bowl of rice and some incense, "People must come here to pay their respects to the spirits represented by the statues."

"But there's one that doesn't seem to belong here," said Usopp slyly.

She gave him a questioning look.

The sniper disappeared behind a statue of a woman holding an urn on her head. Hawke and Zoro followed. They were making for the far corner of the room.

"Here it is!" Usopp posed dramatically, pointing at one of the statues.

Hawke approached. Zoro stayed back, looking at a figure of a large man with a sword.

The statue Usopp was pointing out was smaller than the others, about a head shorter, and stood on a small platform.

The figure had its arms outstretched in a welcoming gesture. The face was hidden within a drooping hood and the feet were covered by a flowing robe. Out of the figures back, two large wings extended back and up. They had been painted or stained black. But other than that, the rest of the statue was the white of the rock it had been made with.

"This must be the statue that Vivi was talking about," said Usopp proudly, "And I found it. I'm a master at finding things."

Hawke was staring at the statue. She still had the newspaper clenched in her hand. She unfolded it, raised the wanted poster and held it next to the statue.

"Woah," said Usopp, "It looks just like the person in that photo. Who is that?"

He leaned in and squinted at the picture.

"It's me, Usopp," Hawke whispered.

"Eh?!" the sniper shouted and snatched the poster out of her hands.

"You're right, it is you!" he exclaimed, "You have a bounty?! And it's way higher than Luffy's!"

"But that's not me," said Hawke quietly, taking back the picture, "I mean, you can't even tell who this is if you don't know it's me."

"Still," muttered Usopp, "That's an uncanny resemblance."

"Yeah, it is," mumbled Hawke, staring at the statue.

They stood in silence for a few moments, both wondering about the figure in front of them.

Just then, Sanji's voice could be heard echoing through the palace.

"Usopp, get back here and help me unload all the stuff you bought!" he shouted.

"Ugh," sighed Usopp, "He needs me to do everything for him. Coming?" he turned and asked Hawke.

The scout shook her head.

"I'm going to stay a bit longer, if that's alright," she said, glancing back at the statue, "I'll come soon though."

"Okie dokie," said Usopp over his shoulder as he left the hall.

As the sniper left, Zoro finally joined Hawke at the statue.

"So this is what Vivi was talking about?" he muttered.

Hawke approached the statue. She bent down and looked at the brass plate stuck onto the edge of the platform.

"Dark Angel," she read aloud.

She straightened and felt a small nudge on her hip.

"See," Zoro said, "It's the person in the poster, not you."

Hawke blinked and felt her face begin to flush.

Zoro had come to stand next to her as she inspected the figure. He wasn't uncomfortably close, but the hilt of one of his swords was gently pressing against her hip. The white one… _Wasn't that… hers_, she thought.

Hawke looked at the swordsman. His gaze was fixed straight ahead, but she saw a small twitch at the corner of his mouth.

She felt like this was Zoro's way of trying to comfort her.

"Yeah," she said happily, "It's not like anyone's going to come looking for me."

Hawke glanced back at the statue and sighed.

"What does this mean, though?" she wondered aloud.

There was a pause. Then she felt Zoro shift his position.

"Here," he grunted.

Hawke turned and saw the swordsman's hand was outstretched and holding a large bundle.

"I forgot that I'd picked it up, or I would've given it to you earlier."

"You forgot that you had something that big in your pocket?" she asked dubiously, eyeing the package.

"Shut up!" the swordsman said gruffly.

Hawke smiled as she took the bundle and untangled it.

She gasped.

"My jacket!" she exclaimed, "I thought I left it in the cage back in the casino!"

"Well that's where I found it," muttered Zoro.

Hawke put the jacket on over her t-shirt. She felt the familiar weight of the leather and an instant feeling of comfort washed over her. Vivi had offered her some clothes so she didn't have to walk around in that dancer's outfit anymore. Hawke was okay with the casual t-shirt and jeans the princess had given her, but she had still felt exposed. She was used to the feeling of her leather jacket. She could feel her emotions getting the better of her.

"Thank you so much, Zoro!" she smiled and pulled the swordsman into a hug, "I was really upset when I thought I'd lost it."

Zoro's body stiffened at first, but Hawke felt him start to relax as she held on for a bit longer.

"It was nothing," he snapped, "I just thought you'd still want it."

Hawke let out a laugh and stepped back.

She noticed Zoro's face was a little dark, he seemed distracted.

"So you were in the same cage that we were put in?" he asked suddenly.

Hawke blinked.

"Uh, yeah," she mumbled, "Crocodile was holding me prisoner in there. I must have been in there for days…It feels like so long ago now."

Zoro looked like he was about to say something, but he stopped himself. His face was dark and he had his fist clenched at his side.

"I think you owe us an explanation," he finally growled.

Hawke blinked.

"That creep called you "Angel" and said you were even more important than his plan to take over Alabasta. I think we have the right to know why."

Hawke turned to face him.

_They're right,_ she thought,_ I should tell everyone what I do know, just in case something comes of this situation later._

"Yes," she said quietly, "I don't know much about this myself, but you have a right to know."

She motioned back the way they had come.

"Let's go back to the infirmary," she said, turning as she spoke, "I'll tell everyone at once."

The two made their way back through the palace in silence.

Hawke was a little ahead, leading the way. But as they neared the doors, Zoro sped up to reach them first. He pushed them open and let Hawke go through before him.

"Thanks, Zoro," Hawke smiled up at him as she walked under his arm.

They found the rest of the crew in this room. Sanji and Usopp were organising the supplies they'd just bought, Nami was reading a book, and Luffy, it seemed, had just woken up. Vivi and Chopper were sitting by his bed.

"Oi, Zoro, Hawke!" laughed the captain, "Long time no see."

Hawke returned his laugh with a smile and sat down at the end of his bed.

"It's good to see you again, captain," she said.

"Long time no see?" Luffy asked her, bending his head to the side, "Long time no see?"

"Well you've been asleep for three days," muttered Usopp, organising his groceries on a table by the door.

"Three days?!" exclaimed Luffy, "I've missed fifteen meals!"

"Why were you so fast at calculating _that_?!" snapped Nami.

"And you counted five meals per day," muttered Usopp.

Hawke smiled.

Vivi turned to her.

"So," she began, "Usopp said he showed you something in the castle?"

"Yeah," replied Hawke, "We found that statue that you mentioned."

Vivi gave her a strange look, but didn't say anything. Hawke could see a newspaper on her lap.

"Statue?" asked Nami.

"Actually, I'm the one that found it," said Usopp, posing dramatically and beaming with pride.

"The one with the robes and the wings?" asked Chopper, his eyes shining.

"Yeah," said the scout, looking down at the reindeer, "And it looks just like she described it."

"Woah!" gasped Chopper, "There's a statue of Hawke in Vivi's castle!"

Luffy, who had just seen the wanted poster on Vivi's lap, suddenly sprang up, standing on his bed.

"Oi!" he shouted, "How come you have such a high bounty! Why's it higher than mine! That's not fair!"

"Calm down Luffy," said Hawke nervously, "I think I can explain that a little, and in a way, that isn't me."

Luffy stopped short, his arms still up in the air.

"Huh?" he asked, "It's not you? Oh okay then!"

He immediately became cheery again and sat down.

Hawke stared at her brother.

_He can be so clueless sometimes_, she thought.

"But this _is_ you, Hawke-san," said Sanji, going over and picking up the wanted poster, "And this bounty is pretty high for this part of the Grand Line. This is serious."

"Yes I know that, Sanji," Hawke nodded and pointed at the poster, "But the only people who know that that figure is me are you guys, Crocodile, his partner Robin and the two billions who kidnapped me."

She faced the rest of the crew and spoke a little louder.

"Of those people, I think the only ones who might not keep the secret are Crocodile and Ro—"

Hawke suddenly stopped mid-sentence. Her eyes widened and she began looking worried.

"What's wrong?" asked Chopper.

"I- I just remembered someone else," stuttered Hawke, covering her mouth with her hand and standing, "Back in the port city, the one where I got kidnapped, I used my wings to try and escape from the marine called Smoker…"

"What?!" exclaimed Usopp, "If Smoker knows about this we're done for!"

He pretended to faint onto a nearby bed.

Hawke was almost frantic.

"This is all my fault!" she exclaimed, on the brink of tears, "I was too careless, if the navy finds out who the Dark Angel really is, then they'll hunt us down without mercy!"

"Calm down Hawke," said Nami in a concerned voice, "The bounty is to try to get bounty hunters chasing us. It doesn't mean that the marines will go completely out of their way to get us."

"But they will!" panicked Hawke, "Luffy, I can't sail with you if they find out!"

Everyone in the room stiffened.

"What?!" shouted Luffy, rounding on her.

"Calm down," Zoro interrupted suddenly, "Hawke, explain to us why you have such a high bounty and why the government will hunt you down. Because, when you think about it, you didn't really do anything that would be worthy of a hundred million bounty."

Hawke clenched her fists and slowed her breathing.

_He's right_, she thought_, this is probably making no sense to them._

She cleared her throat.

"While I was being held captive by Crocodile, I learned a little about myself, although I'm still not completely sure if what I found out is true."

She took a breath.

"Miss All Sunday told me of an ancient prophecy. She thinks, for some reason, that I am the subject of that prophecy and that, if I am, the World Government will hunt me down and kill me."

"What?!" exclaimed the crew as a whole.

"But why?!" whimpered Chopper.

"What is this prophecy?" asked Vivi suddenly.

She was staring at Hawke fearfully.

"Umm..." Hawke mumbled, "I think it went something like this: From the East it will come, A dark angel to bring a long awaited peace, the history will be revealed when black wings fly once more."

Vivi's eyes widened.

"I've heard that before!" she exclaimed, "All the rulers of the kingdoms know it."

"What?" gasped Hawke, "So it is a real prophecy? I was hoping that they were making it up just to mess with me."

Vivi shook her head.

"No, it is real," she said, "And this is very serious."

"Why is that, Vivi-chan?" asked Sanji.

"Because," said Vivi in a grave voice, "If ever any of the rulers hear anything to do with this prophecy, they are to report to the World Government immediately and take the suspect under custody."

"Eh!?" shouted the crew.

"You're not going to turn Hawke in are you?" sobbed Chopper, running over and clinging to Hawke's leg.

Vivi shook her head.

"I won't do that," she reassured the crew, "We aren't even sure that the prophecy is talking about her. Though the evidence is beginning to pile up," she added, glancing towards Hawke.

The scout looked at the ground.

"But, what does this mean?" asked Nami, "Why would the World Government want to kill Hawke?"

Hawke raised her head.

"I think it's because of the part of the prophecy that talks about the true history being revealed," she mumbled, "The World Government doesn't want people to know what happened in the Blank Century, and they will do anything to keep it hidden."

There was a momentary silence.

"This is a lot to take in," muttered Sanji.

"Tell me about it," groaned Hawke, and she flopped back onto the bed.

"So, let me get this straight," said Luffy, jumping up with a determined look on his face, "If the marines find out that Hawke is the person on the wanted poster, they'll come after us."

"Yes, that's pretty much it," said Usopp.

"Well then if that happens, we'll beat their asses!" shouted Luffy, throwing his fist in the air, "No one's gunna take my little sister away again!"

Hawke sat up and smiled.

"Luffy..," she whispered.

The captain spun around to face her. His face was surprisingly serious.

Hawke started as he raised his finger and pointed at her.

"And there's no way that you can't sail with us," he said, his voice almost menacing, "That's not going to happen!"

Hawke felt tears beginning to form in the corner of her eye.

"Of course, Luffy," she smiled, wiping them away, "I was getting too worked up, I'm sorry I said that."

Luffy gave her a satisfied smirk.

"It doesn't matter if you're part of this mystery prophecy," he laughed, "You're one of us, and it doesn't matter who comes after us. I'll just kick their asses until they run away crying."

Hawke looked up at Luffy. He was smiling down at her. She let her eyes wander to the others. They were all watching her with smiles on their faces.

"Thanks, you guys," she beamed at them.

Just then, the doors opened and a large woman entered

"So the captain is awake!" the woman exclaimed loudly, "Dinner's in thirty minutes. Does he mind waiting?"

A huge trolley of fruit was wheeled in after her.

"This is Terracotta-san," explained Vivi, "She's Igaram's wife and the Palace's top chef."

"You all took care of Vivi-san and my husband," laughed Terracotta, then she pointed at Luffy, "I've heard you eat a lot, do you think you could snack on this fruit until dinner time?"

The trolley was wheeled over to Luffy's bedside.

"Okay," said the captain and he immediately swallowed the entire contents of the trolley.

"Was that some kind of trick?!" exclaimed Zoro and Sanji, glaring at Luffy.

"I'm gunna eat three days' worth of food," Luffy advised Terracotta.

"I was hoping you would say that," she smiled, "I've been a chef for thirty years! I won't lose to some youngster's stomach, so eat all you can!"

"Yosh!" shouted Luffy.

"Well I'd better go prepare," said Terracotta, "See you in thirty minutes."

"Thank you," replied Vivi, then she turned to the crew, "I've organised a banquet for tonight," she smiled, "After all, I promised Luffy I'd feed him if he defeated Crocodile."

"Hurray!" shouted Luffy, "Food!"

Everyone laughed as their captain sped out of the room.

"He knows that it's not for another half hour…?" muttered Usopp in exasperation.

"Still," laughed Nami, "We'd better start heading down. He might eat it all straight out of the kitchen if we're not there to stop him."

The crew began making their way out of the infirmary.

At the door Hawke paused and turned to Vivi.

"Are you sure about this?" she asked nervously.

"There's no way I'm turning you in," said Vivi sternly, "But I think that you should be very careful about revealing yourself to anyone from now on."

Hawke nodded and they began following the others.

"Oh," said Vivi, "I almost forgot. We're holding a small ceremony for Pell tomorrow afternoon. Would you like to come?"

Hawke was slightly taken aback.

"But," she stuttered, "Am I allowed to? I didn't even know him."

Vivi smiled.

"You were there for his last moments," she said, "And I'm sure he would enjoy you being there."

Hawke rubbed her arm awkwardly.

"Well, alright," she muttered, "If I can, I will."

Just then a memory came floating back to her.

_Please help Princess Vivi restore peace to this country. _That's what Pell had asked her to do before he sacrificed himself.

Hawke looked down at the paper still in her hand.

"Well I hope I've helped enough," she said quietly to the floor.

"Helped who?" a gruff voice answered her.

Hawke started and looked up.

Vivi had caught up with the others, but Zoro had dropped back and was walking beside her.

"Ah… I made a promise to Pell before he died," she stuttered.

"The bird man?" he asked.

"Yeah," Hawke nodded.

They walked in silence for a few moments, following the crew through the palace.

"You shouldn't be going anywhere by yourself," Zoro snapped suddenly, "As soon as you're out of sight, Luffy gets worried."

Hawke blinked, his harsh tone made her stop walking.

"Luffy…?" she trailed off.

"And he's not the only one," muttered Zoro, staring at the floor.

Hawke's eyes widened.

_Well this came out of nowhere_, she thought. But the thought that Luffy and Zoro worried about her made her feel warm inside.

Zoro was looking at her.

He raised his hand and placed it on her shoulder.

"You… you're one of us, like Luffy said," he muttered, "It doesn't matter what your past or future is, I'll… I mean we'll protect you from anything that threatens you."

Hawke gazed at the swordsman. His cheeks were a little flushed and he couldn't hold her gaze. But she could tell that he wanted to say something more. She could feel her heart hammering against her ribs. The pressure was actually making her wound ache.

"I'm sorry that I panicked back there," she said, smiling, "I would never dream of leaving the Strawhats. This is where I want to be."

Zoro was still looking at the floor, but Hawke felt his hand squeeze a little harder on her shoulder.

"Just…, stay close okay," muttered the swordsman.

Hawke blushed and met Zoro's gaze, raising her hand and placing it on top of his.

"Promise," she said happily.

Zoro smirked and dropped his hand. Hawke did the same. There was comfortable feeling in the air around them.

"Oi Zoro!" Luffy's shout snapped the scout back to reality, "Hurry up or you'll get lost!"

The swordsman stiffened and shouted back down the hall.

"Shut up! I'm coming."

Hawke let out a giggle and they made their way after the crew.

"I think I might've strained myself," she mumbled, rubbing her side.

Zoro shot a concerned glance at her.

"Well I heard the King invited us to the Royal Baths after the feast," he said.

Hawke's spirit lifted a little.

"Well that's something to look forward too," she said as they finally reached the door to the dining hall.

A lively meal ensued; with dancing and face stuffing galore. The guards, though somewhat disgusted at first, eventually joined in on the festivities. Hawke ate quietly and watched the festivities of her crew enfold around her. _I am so grateful to be back,_ she sighed to herself.

Just as promised, the King invited them to the royal bath house after the meal. Nami, Vivi and Hawke had the entire women's half to themselves.

"This is glorious!" sang Hawke as she sank into a hot tub.

"This feels so good!" sighed Nami, "I wonder if there are any ships out there that have baths this big on them."

She and Vivi were taking turns washing each other's backs.

Hawke looked over.

"I'm sure there are," she laughed, "The Sea is so vast."

"We've seen giants, dinosaurs, and sakura bloom in a land of snow," sighed Vivi, scrubbing Nami's back, "The Sea must contain so many more unimaginable things!"

The two pirates looked fondly at the princess.

"Uh... what?" stammered Vivi.

They smiled.

"Switch," said Nami, "And Hawke, you're next."

"Alright," smiled the scout, reaching for her towel.

Just then, Vivi glanced up at the wall.

"Eh?!" she exclaimed, "Wait a minute, what are you all doing up there?"

Hawke jerked around.

"Eek!" she cried and sank up to her chin in the bath water.

The men had climbed the wall of their side of the bath to peek in over at the girls.

"Those guys…," said Nami sullenly, "Alright, it'll be 100 000 beri each."

She stood up.

"Happiness punch!" she laughed and dropped her towel.

"Nami!" exclaimed Hawke, "You're so bold."

"Nami-san!" gasped Vivi.

The men all fell backwards off the wall.

Nami smiled and gave the girls a thumbs-up.

Just then they heard some voices coming over the wall.

"What did you see, you pervert cook!" Hawke heard Zoro growl menacingly.

"Just the most beautiful sight the world has to offer!" came the love cooks response, "Mellorine!"

"What did you see?!" Zoro repeated and the sounds of a scuffle followed.

"Why are you so worked up, Mr. Swordsman?" they heard Igaram's voice, "Do you have feelings for the orange haired woman?"

"No!" snapped Zoro.

"Well then don't worry," the King's voice came over the wall, "She was the only one who exposed herself."

A silence followed. Then they heard the King's voice again.

"Thank you."

"You dirty old man!" the rest of the men jeered.

"Not for that!" snapped the King, "I mean it from the bottom of my heart. Thank you. Thank you so much."

Nami and Vivi smiled and gave Hawke sly side-long glances.

"What?!" huffed Hawke.

The two girls only giggled, then joined Hawke in the bath and relaxed.

After a long silence, Nami spoke.

"I suppose you're wondering," she began, turning to Vivi, "We're thinking of leaving tonight."

"Really?!" gasped Vivi, looking a bit sad.

"Well there isn't really a reason for us to be here anymore is there," said Hawke.

She had suspected as much when she'd seen Nami packing away her books.

"Our captain is awake and the marines are probably in the harbour," said Nami, "Our ship's in danger."

"The Merry," Hawke sighed.

It had been ages since she'd been on the ship. She missed her.

They enjoyed the rest of their bath with unbridled pleasure and relaxation. Hawke felt the water soothing her wounds and replenishing her strength.

_Yes_, she thought, _it's about time we moved on. I wonder what Vivi will choose?_

She glanced over at Nami.

The girls exchanged smiles, then closed their eyes and relaxed.


	29. Chapter 29: Farewell Vivi: Hello Robin

**Chapter 29**

**Farewell Vivi: Hello Robin**

The crew quickly gathered their supplies and snuck out the window of the infirmary. Vivi had recruited the Super Sonic Duck Squad for them to travel on.

Mr. 2 had called them on a snail phone and had told them he had taken their ship up the Sandora River. The crew were still wary about this, but they had no other choice.

It had been a hard goodbye for Vivi. They had given her an ultimatum: they would sail by the east harbour at noon the next day, if she wanted to keep sailing with them, that's the only chance she would get.

Hawke felt sad as they rode the ducks across the desert. She knew Vivi must be feeling very conflicted, but it was a decision that she had to make on her own.

When they were far enough away from any cities, Hawke took out her wings and flew on ahead of the crew. She kept herself low to the ground, just in case there were any small villages nearby.

She approached the river from behind a sand dune and landed. Withdrawing her wings, she climbed silently to the top of the dune and peeked over the edge.

Mr. 2 had kept his word. The Going Merry was waiting for them in perfect condition. Hawke could see the ex-agent pirouetting around the deck.

"Un, deux, trois," she could hear him chanting as he twirled.

She took off back towards her friends.

When she met them, she relayed the news and got back on her duck.

"Well, at least the Merry's okay," muttered Sanji, "We'll have to wash the smell of that freak off her though."

They reached the Merry within the hour.

"I was waiting for you guuuuys!" shouted Mr. 2, or Bon Clay, from the rail of the Merry, "How lovely to see youuuuu again!"

"Alright, we made it," Sanji shuddered, "Everyone unload your stuff."

The crew took all their supplies and said farewell to the ducks. They watched as they took off running back into the desert before beginning to load their supplies onto the ship.

Bon Clay looked down at them.

"Baroque Works has crumbled," he said, sulking, "We're not enemies anymore."

"If you're not our enemy then why are you on our ship?" shouted Luffy.

Hawke was surprised at how cautious he was being, given his usual instant friendship with anyone new.

"You silly, silly man!" exclaimed Bon Clay.

"What did you say!" shouted Luffy, waving his fists.

"If he hadn't taken our ship, the marines might have," said Nami, bringing her bags onto the ship.

"Not might have," said Bon Clay, "They definitely would have. Do you knooooow what's happening on this island right now? It's entirely blockaded by marine ships! Blockaded!"

"So then," stuttered Luffy, "You protected our ship from the marines?"

"Why?" shouted Usopp.

Bon Clay smiled.

"Because we're friends," he gave them a thumbs up.

Luffy, Usopp and Chopper immediately became best friends with Bon Clay and began dancing around the deck and singing with him.

Hawke rolled her eyes and boarded the Merry. She ran her hand along the rail and sighed happily.

"Feels good to be back?" she heard Zoro ask as he came up from stowing the cargo away.

Hawke gave him a smile.

"Yep!" she giggled.

Just then Bon Clay's ship appeared behind them on the river, his crew cheering enthusiastically.

"How long were you guys there?!" shouted Sanji.

"Shut up and let's get going!" snapped Nami.

"Yes, Nami-swan!" swooned Sanji as he sped to do her bidding.

They quickly sailed back down the Sandora River towards the harbour. By the time the sun was rising, they were approaching the bay. Hawke quickly made her way up to the crow's nest and surveyed the waters ahead of them.

"Oh no!" she gasped, then she leaned out over the edge and shouted down to Nami, "There's a fleet of marine ships at the mouth of the river!"

"What?!" shouted Luffy.

"I can see eight," called Hawke, "They're in attack formation. They'll fire on us!"

"We're still smaller than them," shouted Nami, "We can slip through their defenses. Mr. 2's ship can follow close behind us."

"You're the very best of friends," cried Bon Clay, dancing across the deck.

"Yeah, yeah," grumbled Nami.

The Merry made it around the blockade, but only just. And within seconds, Hawke could hear loud thuds and whistling sounds.

"They're firing!" she shouted.

"What is that?!" Luffy shouted as he, Zoro and Sanji leapt up to defend the Merry.

As they punched, sliced and kicked the objects flying towards them on that side of the ship, Hawke saw some more being fired on the other side.

"Watch out!" she yelled and jumped out of the crow's nest.

She managed to deflect one of the projectiles, but four others hit their target. Hawke gasped as she looked at the damage.

"Those aren't cannon balls?!" she exclaimed, "Why are they firing steel bars at us?"

"Just throw cannon balls at us already!" shouted Luffy, "I can bounce those back!"

"We can only protect one side at a time," Zoro grunted.

The Merry shook as more and more steel bars embedded themselves into her hull.

"No matter what we do, they won't break their formation!" Hawke shouted as she looked out at the eight ships.

They were positioned around them in a square, with two ships at each corner.

Suddenly, there was a crash and one of the ships exploded, careening into its partner ship and sinking.

The crew froze and looked over at Usopp. He had gotten their cannon and targeted the marines.

Hawke smiled at the look on their sniper's face.

_He's amazed that he hit them himself_, she thought_, he needs to realize how good he really is. Why else would Luffy want him on his crew?_

Just then they heard someone calling from Bon Clay's ship.

"We've got a problem!" a man shouted, "It's the Black Cage!"

"What!?" shouted Bon Clay, rushing over to the rail, "The marine captain who patrols this part of the ocean. We need to get out of here quick!"

The crew froze. Hawke looked up at Bon Clay with a serious face.

"What the hell are youuu guys doing?" the ex-agent cried in frustration, "If we head south now, we can get away with minimum damage! If we stay like this we're done for!"

Still the crew was unmoved.

"If you want to go, then go," said Luffy, "We can't."

Bon Clay looked at him as if he were crazy.

"What do you mean you can't?!" he screamed.

The men on Bon Clay's ship began calling for him to join them and escape.

"We made a promise to be at the eastern harbour at noon," said Nami, "There's no time to sail back. We have to press forward."

Bon Clay's cheeks puffed up in frustration

"That is the silliest of silly things I've ever heard!" he shouted, "What treasure could possibly be there that's worth your lives?!"

He spun around to show his back to them.

"Go and die then!" he huffed.

Luffy smiled at his back.

"We're going to meet our nakama," he said.

Bon Clay froze.

"Bon Clay-sama!" his crew shouted over.

The ex-agent stood with his back to the crew.

"Running away now would go against the Bon Clay way!" he declared, his back stiffening, "Friends who risk their lives to see their friend… Knowing that you abandoned them, would you be able to enjoy your breakfast tomorrow morning!"

He pointed his finger across at his crew. They all gasped and took a step back.

"Listen up boys," he continued, "And the Strawhat team as well. Pay heed to my words!"

Hawke glanced over at Luffy and saw him put his serious face on. She had to cover her mouth to stop herself from laughing.

Bon Clay told them his plan and before they could react to it, he jumped aboard his own ship and took off.

Hawke stared after him.

"He isn't serious is he?" she gasped.

"Just get below deck!" whispered Usopp.

Hawke followed the others into the hold and peeked out one of holes left by the steel bars.

Just as Bon Clay had expected, the marines began following his duck ship and ignored the Merry.

They watched as all the ships moved away from them.

"Three minutes," whispered Nami.

The crew rushed back up on deck.

"Full speed ahead!" shouted the navigator.

The crew hurried to make way as fast as they could.

"It worked," said Hawke, looking back at Bon Clay's ship, "But at what cost?"

Just then they heard shots being fired.

They looked on as the duck ship was hit by countless steel bars and began listing. They could just make out the pirates jumping aboard the marine vessels and beginning to fight. There were more explosions and they saw smoke begin to rise.

"B-Bon-chan!" gasped Luffy, clenching the rail, "Bon-chan we will… Never forget you guys!"

Hawke couldn't believe that Mr. 2 had actually sacrificed himself for them. There was no way he would make it out of that fight. She felt a tear roll down her cheek.

She looked over at the rest of the crew and saw they were crying too. Luffy was bawling his eyes out.

They heard Bon Clay's yell carry over the waves as his ship suck into the depths.

Hawke put her hand on Luffy's shoulder, wiping her own cheeks with her sleeve. Even as she did this, she could feel more tears rolling down.

"He's a good man," she said, choking slightly.

She felt a nudge on her hip. Looking over, she saw Zoro at her side, his swords just barely resting on her hip.

"We've got to continue on," muttered the swordsman.

The crew took a moment to collect themselves and then set about sailing as fast as they could. They had to make it to the east harbour on time!

Hawke returned to the crow's nest. After another hour she called down.

"There are more marines ahead!" she shouted.

"Here they come again!" wailed Usopp.

"Get out of our way!" yelled Luffy.

The crew watched as the marines advanced and, when they were close enough, began to fight.

_We're almost there_, thought Hawke as she fought some marines off the bow, _I hope we're not too late!_

The Monster Trio was strong and they made short work of the ships. The crew sailed on, leaving the smouldering wreckage in their wake.

Hawke stiffened as they approached the eastern harbour.

"I can hear her!" she exclaimed, running over to the rail and leaning out over the water, "Its Vivi!"

"You can hear the speech too?" muttered Zoro, "That's Vivi's voice…"

"It's being broadcast from the ceremony in Alubarna," said Sanji somberly, "So it's settled, she ain't coming."

"No!" snapped Luffy, "That only sounded like Vivi's voice! She's definitely going to be at the place she promised, right?"

"Yeah, she is," said Hawke resolutely, though she felt she knew what Vivi had decided.

"Let's go," said Sanji, "It's past noon."

"She has to be here!" whined Luffy, "Let's get off the ship and go look for her."

Hawke could hear the desperation creeping into her brother's voice.

"Oi, we got another problem!" Usopp suddenly shouted, pointing out the other side of the ship, "The marines are coming at us again!"

"Just how many damned ships do they have?" muttered Zoro.

Just then, the ships came into view.

"Shit!" he exclaimed, "We're moving on."

"Hard to starboard!" shouted Usopp.

Hawke looked back at Luffy, who was still clinging to the rail, staring at the shore.

"Give it up, Luffy," muttered Sanji, "She's from a different world."

Hawke saw Luffy strain against the rail, then he sighed and let go.

She gave him a pained look and took one last glance back towards the shore.

She gasped.

"Wait! Look!" she shouted, pointing excitedly.

Just at that moment, they heard Vivi's voice call out over the waves.

"Everyone!"

Luffy spun around.

"Vivi!" he shouted, jumping up onto the rail.

There she was, standing on the rocks at the edge of the sea. Vivi and Carue were waving furiously.

"Vivi! Carue!" shouted Hawke, waving back.

"Turn the ship around!" shouted Usopp, hurrying back to the stern.

"The marines are coming closer!" said Chopper excitedly.

Then he turned and waved at their friends on the shore.

"I'm here to say good-bye!"

The crew froze.

_Good-bye?_ Thought Hawke. Then she sighed_, Vivi is a Princess after all, she can't come gallivanting across the sea with us, just as I thought._

"Wh-what did she say?" stuttered Luffy.

Hawke saw Vivi pick up a receiver from Carue's back.

"I can't go with you," Vivi's voice rang out from the loud speakers all over Alabasta, "Thank you for everything!"

Hawke saw Chopper and Luffy becoming confused.

_This is going to be hard_, she thought, clenching her fist.

"I want to have many more adventures," Vivi continued, "But I can't because… I love my country!"

Luffy stared across the water at her.

"That's why I can't come with you," Vivi finished.

Hawke watched Luffy carefully. He was staring across the water at her, then he seemed to realize what Vivi was saying.

"Oh!" he said, a smile returning to his face.

"I-," Vivi's voice rang out again, "I-…"

They could hear her quiet sobs, even though she held the receiver away from her face.

"I will stay here!" she finally got out.

Hawke felt tears welling up in her eyes. She clenched the rail.

"Vivi…" she whispered.

Vivi's voice came crisp and clear over the waves.

"But if we ever meet again…"

Hawke could hear the hope and sadness in her voice.

"…will you still call me your nakama?"

Hawke saw Luffy's face light up. Just as he opened his mouth, Hawke caught sight of the marines out of the corner of her eye.

"Wait!" she cried.

"Anyti-," Luffy began.

But Nami saved the day by grabbing his face and flinging him to the ground.

"You idiot!" she seethed, "Don't answer! The marines have already seen Vivi. If they get any reason to think she's affiliated with us, she'll become a criminal!"

Hawke breathed a sigh of relief, she had just realised the same thing.

Luffy stood, biting his lip.

Hawke understood how he felt. She really wanted to shout out to Vivi that of course they would still be nakama. How were they going to answer her?

"Let's just make this a silent farewell," said Nami quietly.

They stood facing away from Vivi, non-responding.

As the silence wore on, Hawke could feel Vivi's confusion and sadness as if it were floating over to them from the shore.

"We shouldn't leave her like this!" she whispered angrily.

Hawke let her tears fall. She clenched at her sleeve, pulling it up and looking at the white bandage still wrapped around her arm.

She tore off the cloth, glancing over at Luffy as she did so. To her surprise, her brother had done the same thing.

Luffy met her gaze and gave her a smirk.

Then they raised their arms in unison. The other crew members quickly followed suit.

Hawke smiled as she stole a glance over her shoulder.

She could just make out Vivi and Carue on the shore, arm (and wing) raised, returning their salute.

"She'll be an amazing Princess," she sighed.

Just then they heard the approaching whistle of a cannon ball. But the crew stood resolute and kept their arms up in the air, despite the splash of cannon balls all around them. The spray soon soaked Hawke to her skin. But she still smiled.

"The marines are within striking distance now," said Nami, lowering her arm and turning her gaze to the oncoming ships, "Since Vivi's made her choice, we have to get out of here."

Luffy turned back and smiled at the shore.

He raised his arms and tilted his head back to the sky.

"Set sail!" he shouted.

"Aye, captain!" returned the crew with a cheer.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Cannon balls rocked the Merry to and fro.

"Whoa, those guys are fast," said Luffy.

"More like we're slowing down," replied Sanji.

"We're taking in too much water from the holes below deck," snapped Nami, "If those guys don't do something quick, we'll sink."

"Well, there's only three," muttered Zoro.

"Guess we'll have to fight them!" said Sanji.

"Let's get 'em!" shouted Luffy.

The three of them set off, only to immediately trip over the piles of steel bars Hawke had been placing around the deck.

"What the hell!?" the trio shouted as they untangled themselves from each other.

"Oh, those?" sighed Hawke, "Usopp asked me to keep them in case we needed them for something."

"They're in the way!" shouted Zoro.

"We don't need them!" snapped Sanji.

"I'll chuck 'em," mumbled Luffy.

He quickly threw the entire stack over board, followed by the rest of them. Incidentally, he aimed directly at the advancing marine ships, hitting them head on and dramatically slowing their chase.

"Alright, let's get 'em!" said Luffy, turning around again, "Huh?"

He paused as he saw the damage he'd done.

"Before it's too late," said Zoro over his shoulder, "Full speed out of here!"

The Merry quickly lost her pursuers, but their speed was slowing by the second.

Usopp came running up on deck, carrying a drenched and bedraggled Chopper.

"There's too much water," he panted, "We'll have to row."

He handed Chopper to Luffy.

"Sanji come help me, this guy's useless in the water," he pointed at the barely conscious reindeer.

The cook grunted and followed Usopp back downstairs.

Zoro and Luffy got out the oars and set them up on either side of the ship.

"Hawke!" called Zoro, "I'll need your help on this side!"

"Okay," called Hawke and she went down to the main deck.

"Get up here," the swordsman motioned to the railing.

Hawke did as she was told and glanced over to the other side, where Luffy and Chopper were sitting. Chopper seemed to have recovered (after a vigorous drying by Nami's towel) and had changed into a larger form and was sitting behind Luffy, both were holding the oar, ready to paddle.

_Wait,_ she thought_, is Zoro going to-?_

She suddenly felt the swordsman jump up onto the rail behind her. He quickly brought the oar over her head.

"Grab on," he muttered.

Hawke blushed as she felt the warmth of his breath on her neck. She quickly took hold of the oar. Zoro put his hands on either side of her own.

"Ready?" he asked.

"Yep," Hawke answered hurriedly, hoping her voice wasn't shaking.

"Okay, ready!" she heard Nami call.

Zoro thrust out the oar, jerking Hawke forward, then pulling her back. She felt her back press against Zoro's chest.

_This is much too close!_ She thought, feeling her face start to flush.

She tried focusing on paddling, making her movements in time with Zoro's and adding her own strength to the stroke.

Nami began blowing a whistle and they timed their oar stroke with the sound.

"I'd say you're as strong as that shitty cook," muttered Zoro, pulling back.

"Ha!" grunted Hawke, pushing forward, "I'm nowhere near as strong as you guys yet."

She glanced over her shoulder and was surprised at how close Zoro was to her, their noses were almost touching.

She swallowed, her throat becoming suddenly dry.

"B-but I will be soon," she stuttered, turning around quickly.

She heard, and somewhat felt, Zoro chuckle.

_Why is he so close?!_ She thought, blushing furiously, _at least he can't see my face._

They kept on rowing until Nami was satisfied that they'd lost the marines for good.

"Okay, you can rest now," she called down.

Zoro let go of the oar with one hand and brought it down to his side. On the way, his hand brushed against Hawke's waist. She stiffened and jerked around to look at him.

"Oh, s-sorry about that," Zoro stuttered, the colour in his cheeks rising.

Hawke immediately lept off the railing. She heard Zoro jump down behind her, but quickly sped away without looking at him.

"Do you need any help up there, Nami?" she asked, hurrying up to the top deck.

Nami gave her a sly glance.

"No, I have everything under control at the moment," she grinned.

Chopper and the others came and joined them on the upper deck. All except Zoro, who was putting the oars away.

Hawke sat down with her back against the rail and let out a deep sigh. There was a sudden thump to her left and she looked over to see the rest of the crew lying on the floor with dejected looks on their faces.

Hawke knew they were all thinking the same thing.

Just then Zoro returned up on deck.

"So we lost them?" he asked.

"Nnnggh," moaned the crew.

"We shook them off didn't we?" he asked again.

"Waaaaah," they groaned in return.

"Hey now…" he asked slowly, "What's with the lifeless response?"

"We miss her!" shouted the crew.

"Quit whining about it!" snapped the swordsman, "If you didn't want to leave her behind, you should've taken her by force."

Hawke sniffed and turned her face away. She was still embarrassed about the rowing event.

"You meathead!" sobbed Chopper.

"You suck," whimpered Nami.

"Marimo," muttered Sanji.

"Santoyryu," mumbled Luffy.

Hawke shot him a look.

"Wait, Luffy," said Usopp, "Santoyryu isn't an insult."

Hawke heard a door open.

"So we finally made it away from the island?" a voice asked.

"Yeah," answered Zoro, walking across the deck.

"Well done."

Hawke jumped up.

She recognized that voice.

Zoro turned and grabbed his swords, ready to unsheathe them

"Here for revenge?" he shouted, "Bring it on!"

The crew leapt up.

"Why are you here?" asked Nami, still crying.

They quickly took up arms and encircled the stowaway who had appeared out of the kitchen.

"Who is she?" asked Chopper.

"It doesn't matter who she is," swooned Sani, "She's a beautiful lady!"

Suddenly, hands sprouted from Zoro and Nami's arms and hit their weapons out of their hands. Hawke had kept her knives in her pocket and was standing back a bit, observing.

"Don't point those dangerous things at me," said Nico Robin, "I told you that before didn't I?"

"How long have you been on this ship?" Nami asked sharply.

"The entire time," was the answer, "Aren't these clothes yours? I'm borrowing them."

She motioned to the outfit she was wearing: A light purple dress shirt with dark purple pants.

"What are you doing, Baroque Works?!" Nami screeched angrily.

"Her name's Nico Robin," said Hawke.

The crew turned to look at her.

"You know her?" asked Luffy.

Robin glanced over at Luffy.

"Monkey D. Luffy," she said, "You aren't forgetting what you did to me, are you?"

Sanji immediately got enraged by this remark.

"Oi, Luffy!" he grabbed the captain by the collar, "What did you do to this beautiful lady!"

Luffy looked at Robin.

"Oi, you!" he said in a complaining voice, "Don't lie. I never did anything to you!"

Robin took out a lawn chair and sat down.

"Yes you did," she said calmly, "You put me through some very excruciating treatment. Take responsibility."

Hawke shot her brother a glance.

"What did you do Luffy?" she asked.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he said, still looking at Robin, "What do you want me to do?"

Robin placed her elbow on the small table she'd put on the deck. Hawke noticed her glance in her direction.

"Allow me to join your nakama," she said calmly.

"Huh!?" the entire crew shouted.

"Sure!" Sanji swooned.

Hawke smiled and lowered her head. She knew from Luffy's face that he was going to say yes. They were about to receive a new crew mate.

She listened as Robin told of what had happened in the tomb in Alabasta and about her goal to find the Rio Poneglyphe and the True History. She finished with explaining how Luffy had forced her to live when she'd wanted to die.

"That is your crime," she said, "I have no place to return to. So are you going to let me stay on your ship?"

"I get it," said Luffy, "So that's how it is? Okay."

"Luffy!" the rest of the crew exclaimed.

He turned and gave them a smile.

"Don't worry," he said, "She's not a bad person."

Sanji was ecstatic and began dancing around singing "Mellorine." The rest of the crew looked very uneasy. Hawke smiled. She still felt in her gut that Robin was trust worthy, she was glad that she'd joined their crew.

Usopp proceeded to interrogate Robin. It was revealed that she was an archeologist and that she'd been wanted by the government since she was eight. Hawke knew all this, but she watched the crew's reactions to this information. They all seemed on edge and nervous, especially Zoro.

They all had dark looks on their faces when she mentioned that she'd worked with many villainous characters in order to achieve her goal.

Hawke actually laughed out loud when, after Nami had warned Robin that she wouldn't be trusted, the archeologist had brought out a bag of jewels and Nami had instantly become her best friend.

"Nami's down," whispered Usopp.

"That was dirty," she heard Zoro muttered.

Hawke laughed.

Robin looked over at her.

"My my, if it isn't our Dark Angel," she smiled.

"You know about that?!" exclaimed Luffy.

"I told you she did," Hawke rolled her eyes at the captain.

She turned her gaze back to the new crew member.

"Nico Robin," she greeted her, "I stand by what I said before. But you will be on a probationary period to start with. You've been the vice president of an elaborate criminal organisation up until today, after all."

Robin smiled at her.

"Fair enough," she said.

Just then Sanji appeared and began fawning over the new lady.

Zoro glared at the group in general and stalked off to the upper deck. Hawke saw him leave and followed close behind.

"You don't like her," she said, coming up to stand beside him at the rail.

"I can't trust her," snapped the swordsman, "I can't believe all of you do!"

"I didn't say I trusted her," said Hawke, "But I do feel like she won't betray us."

Zoro glanced down at her out of the corner of his eye.

Just then they heard footsteps coming up the stairs.

"Speak of the devil," whispered Hawke as she turned around, putting her back to the sea.

Robin came up the stairs and smiled at them.

Hawke returned the smile, but Zoro huffed and turned up his nose.

"This is a nice ship," said Robin, glancing around the deck, "Is it always as lively as this?"

Hawke turned to Zoro.

"Yeah," replied Zoro stiffly, "This is it."

"Oh?" Robin replied and gave them another smile before making her way to the masthead.

Hawke watched Zoro as he frowned after the archeologist. He shifted his feet and Hawke was startled when he took a step closer to her.

"What is she plotting?" he muttered.

"Zoro!" Hawke reprimanded him, "It's okay to be suspicious, but not out loud when the person is right there!"

The swordsman glanced quickly down at her, then grunted and made his way back down to the main deck.

Robin came over to her as he left.

"So I better not get in the way of you two then?" she smiled.

Hawke blinked and took a step back.

"What do you mean?" she stuttered, waving her hands and getting all flustered.

Robin laughed.

"You are young," she said, "Take your time."

Hawke blushed and took another step back.

"Umm, I think I just heard Nami call me," she lied, "Bye!"

She turned and sped back down the stairs and into the ship, making her way to her room and closing the door behind her.

_Was it really that obvious?_ She thought worriedly, _Robin could tell that I have feelings for Zoro right away?_

She quickly distracted herself with tidying and organising her room. She hadn't been in it for almost a month now and it had collected a lot of dust.

_It isn't that obvious,_ she tried to convince herself as she dusted, _Robin's just a very observant person. Yeah._


	30. Chapter 30: A Busy Night: Flash Forward

**Chapter 30**

**A Busy Night: Flash Forward II**

The sky was soon dark.

Hawke was sitting up on the sail, keeping her eye on the horizon for any marine ships.

It was the first time she'd been alone with her thoughts since she'd escaped from Crocodile's clutches. She shivered as she recalled her ordeals at the hands of that man, but she forced herself to banish those memories from her mind.

_That's over now, anyways_, she thought.

She felt her hand stray to the chains hanging around her neck. Bringing up the silver one, she gazed at the pearl.

"I should've tried to get Crocodile to destroy you," she muttered at the formula.

Then she dropped the pendant, sighing as she felt the weight of it hit her chest.

Her mind strayed back to Vivi and Carue, then to their new crew member, Robin.

_Things should stay lively for a time while the crew adjusts,_ she thought.

Hawke liked Robin and felt that the whole crew would be able to trust her over time.

"But I wonder if she was telling the truth when she said she had nothing to live for," Hawke muttered to herself.

It had sounded like the archeologist had been leaving something out. And from what Hawke had learned about her and her ambitions…

_Wouldn't I be her only remaining clue to the True History?_ She thought, tracing the hem of her sleeve, _Is that the real reason she came to us? Because of the prophecy?_

A sudden noise drew her attention and snapped her out of her thoughts.

Hawke looked down and caught sight of a straw hat wearing shadow sneaking towards the kitchen door.

_He's at it again,_ she sighed.

She unfurled her wings and swooped down on the unsuspecting captain.

"Caught you!" she exclaimed as she grabbed his arms and pinned them behind his back, pushing him to the floor.

"Ouch!" shouted Luffy in surprise, "Who's there?"

"It's me, Luffy," Hawke laughed, "And you should know better than to try and sneak into the kitchen. That food is for the whole crew, not just you!"

The captain wriggled around under her.

"But I'm hungry," he whined.

Hawke sighed and let him up.

"Here," she said and pulled a small box out of her jacket and held it out to Luffy, "Sanji made me a midnight snack. You can have this if you're hungry."

"Awesome!" exclaimed Luffy.

He took the box and wasted no time in devouring its contents.

"Delicious!" he sighed in satisfaction, patting his stomach.

Hawke laughed. His eating spectacle had reminded her of another black haired man.

_And it's about time I let him know I met our brother,_ she thought.

"You eat just like Ace," she smiled.

Luffy stopped and stared at her.

"Yeah! Ace said he met you in the restaurant!" he said excitedly.

Hawke blinked.

"He met up with you then?" she asked.

"Yeah, I guess," said Luffy, getting up and making his way over to the railing, "He said that I ran into both of you and Smoker when I got to the restaurant, but I didn't see either of you. He came and fought Smoker for us when we were escaping, then he traveled with us for a while."

Hawke thought for a moment. Then she realised what her brother was talking about.

"That was you?!" she sighed, "Luffy, you slammed us through three buildings! You have to be more careful."

"Sorry," smiled Luffy, jumping up to sit on the railing, swinging his feet out over the water.

Hawke looked at him longingly.

"So you got to see Ace for a while then?" she asked, "That must have been really nice."

She leaned against the rail and looked out at the water.

"Does that mean he's already gone?" she asked, "I was hoping to see him again..."

"Yeah," said Luffy, "Ace was looking for someone and thought they were back in Alabasta, but they weren't so he had to go keep looking."

Hawke sighed.

"He seemed really cool," she stared into the water.

"He's really strong!" Luffy started getting excited again, "He punched through five ships that were even bigger than the Merry! He ate the flame-flame fruit so he can turn his body into fire."

Hawke looked over at her brother. His eyes were shining with excitement.

"You grew up with him after you left the village right?" she asked.

Luffy nodded.

"Yeah, it was me, Ace and Sabo," he started, "We had our very own house in a tree! We swore an oath to be brothers and that we would all become pirates one day! Just like the promise me and you made."

Hawke smiled warmly at her captain.

"So there's another brother?" she asked happily, "I can't wait to meet him too."

Luffy was silent.

Hawke raised her head.

"Luffy?" she asked.

"Sabo set out to sea earlier than us," he said, "His boat got shot down…They could only find his hat…"

Hawke let out a small gasp and raised her hand to her mouth.

"Oh, Luffy, I'm so sorry," she whispered.

But he turned and looked at her, a smile on his face.

"It's okay," he said, pointing up at the sky, "He's watching over Ace n' me. You too probably."

Hawke looked up at Luffy. He was smiling, but she could see pain showing in his eyes.

"Luffy…," she whispered.

"Huh?" he looked at her questioningly.

Hawke wrapped her arms around her brother and pulled him close.

"I know he would be so proud of you right now," she whispered into his ear.

She felt Luffy's head drop onto her shoulder and he collapsed into her embrace.

They stayed there, unmoving, for a very long time. Luffy sitting on the railing, his chin resting on Hawke's shoulder and his eyes closed. Hawke standing, her arms wrapped around her brother and her eyes watching the flow of the waves.

She felt Luffy clear his throat.

"He really wanted to meet you," he said quietly, "They both did."

Hawke raised her hand and placed it on the back of his head, stroking the hair under the brim of his hat.

As she did this, Luffy began telling her about his life with Ace and Sabo and all the adventures they had had.

Hawke let him go on. She hung onto every word, eager to learn everything Luffy could tell her about their family.

As he recounted Sabo's death she felt him gripping her tighter. Hawke returned the squeeze, trying to comfort her brother.

When he'd finished telling her how he had set out to sea after he turned seventeen, he lapsed into silence again.

Suddenly, she felt his body stiffen and he began to hug her back aggressively.

"You… you'll stay on the crew right?" he asked shakily.

He pushed himself out of Hawke's arms and held her away from him, his hands on her shoulders.

"You're staying with us, right? Where I can see you everyday?" he continued, his words coming out extremely quickly.

Hawke stiffened as Zoro's words floated back into her mind.

_As soon as you're out of sight, Luffy gets worried._

_I guess I wasn't the only one scarred from me getting kidnapped,_ she thought.

Hawke brought up her hands and put them on Luffy's arms. She met his gaze.

"I'm not going anywhere, Luffy," she said seriously, then she smiled, "I can't go around making my big brother worried all the time."

Luffy returned her smile and relaxed his grip, pulling her into another hug.

"Thank you, Sissy," he mumbled into her shoulder.

Hawke smiled to herself.

"This is where I want to be," she said, "Where I need to be."

Luffy let his arms drop and Hawke stepped back.

He gave a yawn and Hawke laughed.

"It's pretty late," she giggled.

Luffy sighed.

"Okay," he grumbled, regaining some of his usual enthusiasm, "I guess I'll go to bed then."

He got off the railing and made his way over to the boy's door.

He paused and looked back at Hawke. She was still standing by the railing.

"Sleep well," Hawke smiled and waved her hand.

Luffy gave her his usual wide grin and entered the ship, closing the door softly behind him.

Hawke turned and stared out into the ocean.

Her thoughts were flying all over the place. She had just learned a lot about Luffy's life and the two brothers she'd never known.

She stayed at the rail, processing everything she had heard.

_So there had been another brother_, she thought.

She was glad that Luffy had had others with him while he was growing up. He needed to have people around him, he couldn't stand being alone. But Luffy had suffered greatly after the death of Sabo.

_And he's still suffering a bit_, she thought, _I wish I could have met Sabo…_ _at least he still had Ace._

Hawke, on the other hand, had found herself all alone after Luffy had left. Grampa Garp and Shanks had still visited her and Makino had still been her guardian, but none of the other children in the village had taken her into their groups. She had played and trained by herself for seven years, doing odd jobs around the town to save up for a passage off the island. But though she had been a loner, she was still welcomed among the villagers and wasn't seen as an outcast. She had worked as a waitress for Makino where she had developed her people skills. She had also helped out in the kitchens, practising her knife-throwing, often getting caught and punished by the old head chef.

Hawke smiled at the waves.

_Those were good times, looking back,_ she thought, _we were both looked after in the ways we needed to be, even though we were apart._

Hawke let out a long sigh and stretched her arms upwards.

"We've both come a long way since then…," she trailed off, looking up at the stars.

_But we still need each other_, she thought, making her way back to the mast, _and I have a feeling we always will._

Hawke lifted her head and set her gaze.

_I want to get to know Ace just as much as Luffy does_, she determined to herself, _I want to be able to call him my brother out of love, not just because Luffy does_.

She was about to climb back up to the crow's nest when she heard the ship's door open.

She rolled her eyes at the mast.

"I have no more food," she said, turning to frown at Luffy, thinking he'd come back for more food.

But instead, Zoro emerged from the ship.

"I wasn't going to ask you for any," he muttered as he closed the door behind him.

Hawke blushed, still gripping onto the rungs on the mast.

"Oh, sorry," she stuttered, "I thought you were Luffy again."

Zoro grunted.

"So he's been up here?" he asked.

Hawke nodded.

"I caught him trying to sneak into the kitchen," she explained.

"He can never keep his hunger under control," muttered the swordsman, approaching Hawke.

She smiled warmly.

"You can't sleep?" she asked, finally letting go of the rungs.

"Nah," replied Zoro, "Dreams and stuff… keeping me up."

Hawke blinked.

"You had a bad dream?"

The swordsman glowered and shuffled his feet, seeming to regret his words.

"It was nothing," he snapped, "I just can't sleep, that's all."

Hawke looked at Zoro with a gentle expression on her face.

"If you want to talk about it…," she let the proposal hang in the air.

Zoro stared at the deck. Hawke could see his fists clenched. She made a step towards him.

"People say you feel better after saying what's bothering you out loud," she said.

Zoro glanced up at her.

"It was just a stupid dream," he snapped, "It shouldn't keep me up."

Hawke couldn't stand seeing him look so uncomfortable. She went over to him and reached out, letting her fingertips touch the fabric of his waist band.

"If it's keeping you up, then it probably isn't just a stupid dream," she said quietly.

Zoro looked down at her hand. Then he abruptly sat down on the deck.

Hawke stood bewildered for a few seconds, then he motioned for her to sit as well.

They sat in silence for a few moments.

Hawke could tell Zoro was very tense. She thought talking about another subject might make him relax a bit.

She glanced at his side.

"Do you sleep with your swords?" she asked, seeing the familiar three sheathes.

Zoro's hand flitted subconsciously to his side.

"Yeah, well I can't be caught by surprise," he muttered.

Then his hand fell. His fist clenched and he slammed it onto the wooden planks.

This startled Hawke, but she kept still, not wanting to upset or distract her crewmate. And she was starting to get a feeling of what his dream had been about. She wanted to do all she could to comfort him.

They sat silent for a long time, but eventually Hawke saw the swordsman's brow start to relax and his hands slowly become limp. She wanted to be closer to him, to make him feel better.

"Its okay, Zoro," she whispered, reaching out to run the back of her finger down his forearm.

To her surprise, he didn't flinch away from her touch. In fact, he leaned slightly towards her. Hawke heard him exhale and he raised his head to meet her gaze.

"Why does she look so much like her?" his voice was so full of confusion and hurt that Hawke had to swallow the lump that had formed immediately in her throat.

She'd never seen Zoro with his guard down, showing his emotions so openly.

"Do you mean that marine officer?" she asked, trying to keep her voice steady, "The one who helped us in Alabasta?"

Zoro nodded.

"Tashigi!" he spat out her name, "She freaks me out! I can't fight her… I don't want to be anywhere near her!"

He traced the outlines of the planks beneath him.

"It just brings back a lot of memories…," he mumbled.

"About Kuina?" Hawke pushed.

She got a nod in response.

There was a moment of silence. Hawke tried to recall everything Zoro and the other crewmates had told her about Kuina.

"Her father gave you her sword and her dreams right?" she asked the swordsman.

Another nod.

"Well then, if you take good care of both those things, you'll keep her spirit happy," counselled Hawke, "You can't keep letting your past torment you like this," she continued, "I know this isn't the first night you've been up on deck at night."

Zoro tensed his shoulders and turned his face away from her.

"Don't worry about it, Zoro," pleaded Hawke, "I won't tell anyone… I'll keep your personal things private."

Hearing her repeated promise seemed to comfort the swordsman a little. He turned back towards her and sighed, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Thanks," he grunted.

"I really don't like it when the people I care about aren't happy," mumbled Hawke, "If there's anything I can do to help you feel better… It'd make me happy if I knew I could help."

She was greeted by silence, but she felt that there was much less tension in the air around Zoro than there had been when he'd first come up on deck.

"Hawke," Zoro lifted his head and looked directly into her eyes.

"Yeah," she breathed.

Zoro closed his mouth and stood up, holding his hand down to her. She took it and let him raise her to her feet.

The swordsman stood looking at her. Hawke could feel the colour rising in her cheeks.

"Thank you," Zoro muttered again, closing his eyes and tilting his head down in a small bow, "You've helped."

Hawke felt her heart start to beat harder and she smiled.

"Oh, that's great!" she said happily, bending into a little curtsey.

Zoro smirked at her.

"You don't have to be so happy all the time," he said.

He turned and started to make his way back to the door to the boy's room. Hawke watched his retreating back and felt emotion well up in her throat again. She didn't want him to leave just yet. She quickly followed after him.

Hearing her footsteps, he stopped at the door and stood with his back to her.

"Zoro?" Hawke asked, wondering what he was doing.

Then she saw his arm move slowly back and his hand open towards her. Her eyes widened and she looked quickly up at the back of his head. He stood still, waiting.

Hawke smiled and felt her face flush as she reached out and curled her fingers into the palm of his hand. She felt his fingers close over her own and squeeze.

"I'll be here if you ever need me again," she said quietly to his back.

Zoro let go of her hand and Hawke let it fall limply to her side. She heard the door knob turn.

"Goodnight," he grunted over his shoulder as he opened the door and disappeared inside.

Hawke stayed standing in front of the door and looked down at her hand.

Her heart was hammering and she felt a tingling sensation move through her chest and out along her arms.

"What's this feeling?" she muttered excitedly, wiggling her fingers.

She felt extremely happy, like she could fly to the stars.

Hawke threw her hands up towards the sky and let out a giggle, then a laugh. She ran back down to the main deck and spun around, dancing her heart out.

_I'm so happy,_ she giggled, giving herself a hug.

"Oh my, what a wonderful spectacle," a voice rang out.

Hawke felt her face grow cold and she spun around.

Robin was standing on the upper deck, smiling down at her.

"Anything to report?" she asked the scout.

"How long have you been there?!" Hawke asked tersely, feeling very embarrassed.

"I came out to see the stars and I was greeted by a lovely dancer," replied Robin, coming down to the main deck.

_Phew,_ Hawke thought, _she didn't see Zoro._

She knew the swordsman would be furious if anyone else had seen him with his guard down, especially if it had been Robin.

"I'm just enjoying myself and relieving my boredom," she returned, a little snappily.

"Are you sure it's safe enough to be ignoring your duties?" asked the archeologist, "There could be enemies close by."

Hawke stared her coldly, then she sighed and shrugged.

"I guess I should get back to keeping watch," she muttered and began walking around the ship.

"Do you mind if I join you?" asked Robin, falling into step with the scout.

"By all means," said Hawke politely, but she kept her guard up.

They made the full survey of the ship and returned to the mast.

"So are you happy you joined our crew?" asked Hawke, turning to the archeologist.

Robin smiled and gave her a small nod.

"I think the atmosphere here is lovely," she looked up at the stars, "I haven't felt like this in a long time."

Hawke watched Robin as she looked at the sky. She thought it was time to confront Robin on her true motives.

"So why did you really join us?" she asked.

Robin returned her gaze to Hawke and smiled.

"I knew you weren't as light headed as you make yourself out to be," she said, "You're the only lead I have left, I couldn't let you get away."

Hawke's eyes widened and she took a step back.

"What do you mean, light headed?!" she stammered, "I don't make myself out to be anything! You only saw me when I was sleep deprived, starving and had heat stroke!"

But the archeologist raised her hands.

"I meant no harm with my comment," said Robin reassuringly, "I merely want to travel with you. I think if I am near you, my path will become clearer."

Hawke eyed the archeologist, but she didn't feel threatened and calmed down.

She pulled on the sleeves of her jacket and shuffled her feet, still a little upset about the comment.

"I'm sure you'll love it here," she mumbled, "Luffy makes sure everyone is safe and we make sure he doesn't do anything too stupid."

Robin laughed.

"Yes it sounds like Luffy-san is quite the captain," she said, "He lives up to his name."

Hawke gave her a questioning look.

"His name?" she asked.

"He is one of those who carry the name of D.," Robin explained, "The people who bear this name seem to be of a fighting and excitable nature."

Hawke smiled.

"That sounds exactly like Luffy and Ace," she laughed, "They'll do anything to protect their treasures and to reach their goals."

She looked out at the ocean.

"They're amazing people to have as brothers," she sighed.

"Brothers?" Robin started.

Hawke nodded.

"Luffy's my brother, and Ace is his," she smiled, "So Ace is mine too."

"You have quite the family, then," said Robin, looking at her with great interest.

"Yep!" chirped Hawke, "My family!"

Robin gave her a curious glance.

Hawke blushed.

"Sorry," she mumbled, "I'm still not used to saying I have one, so I get excited."

Robin stared at her, then she smiled.

"I wish I could have a family like yours," she said.

Hawke looked at the archeologist.

"You've been alone since you were eight?" she said quietly, seeing the pain and solitude Robin was hiding under her calm exterior.

Then she took Robin's hand in hers and squeezed.

"Don't worry," she smiled, "We'll be your family now!"

Robin blinked at her and then smiled.

"I think I would like that," she said.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

It took longer than it had with Chopper, but eventually Robin became comfortable with the crew and the crew become comfortable with her (for the most part).

They continued on through the Grand Line and had many more adventures.

They discovered an island that was full of fruit and monkeys and they spent some nice relaxing time there.

Luffy caught a salesman on his fishing line who tried to sell them a lot of strange things before realizing who they were and running away. He left everything he'd offered on deck, including some paper that Nami had wanted to buy for her map making. This had made the navigator in an extremely good mood, which made Hawke happy.

They ran into a marine fleet in thick fog and some shenanigans had ensued with Sanji teaching a young marine chef how to cook curry. Hawke was touched at how Sanji always seemed to look out for the children they ran into. She recalled his similar treatment of Apis back in the East Blue.

They visited an island that held an annual fireworks celebration on the day the crew landed. Hawke had never seen so many beautiful fireworks. And the last one that had gone off had been so huge it had covered the entire sky! She had been so excited that she'd grabbed onto Zoro's arm as she cheered, sharing her excitement with the crowd. As soon as she realised what she'd done, she quickly let go, embarrassed, but Zoro had given her a smile instead of a frown and her heart had soared as high as the fireworks had.

Afterwards they had enjoyed calm seas and sunny days for a while. Hawke was enjoying herself by taking the day off and sitting up on the front deck with Robin and Zoro. She sat quietly by the rails next to Zoro's swords and braided her hair. Robin was reading in her lawn chair and Zoro was taking a nap.

"Hey Zoro," Hawke said, turning her head over to him.

The swordsman grunted to show that he was conscious.

She smiled before continuing.

"Why do they call you the Pirate Hunter?" she asked.

She'd been curious about this for a while but had been a little nervous to bring it up.

Zoro opened his eyes and glanced over at her.

"I don't recall ever giving myself that name," he muttered.

Hawke's eyes widened at his curtness, but she smiled.

"Oh, okay," she said, "I was just curious."

She dropped her gaze and returned to her braiding.

"Your hair looks nice like that," Zoro grunted.

Hawke stiffened and looked up again.

"Like what?" she asked nervously.

"With that braid in it," the swordsman waved his hand at her face.

Hawke gave him a confused looked.

"My hair is always like this," she said tersely.

Zoro choked and jolted himself forward.

"Really?" he stuttered.

Hawke glared at him and turned away, letting out huff.

"You never noticed?" she asked in a hurt voice.

"Ah- I mean- Yeah I noticed," Zoro stammered, jerking his arms out towards her awkwardly, "It just – geez can't I give you a compliment?!"

Hawke felt a smile flit across her lips.

She turned back around, having enjoyed her moment of teasing him.

"Thank you," she said stiffly and then busied herself with her hair again.

Zoro stared at her in confusion for a few moments. She looked up and gave him a small smile. This seemed to comfort him a little and he shrugged, leaned back and resumed his nap.

They sat in silence for a while. Then Hawke looked up towards Robin.

"What are you reading?" Hawke asked the archeologist.

Robin looked up and smiled.

"The Rainbow Mist," she replied.

Hawke raised her eyebrow.

"Weren't you reading that weeks ago?" she asked.

Robin nodded and held up her book.

"This is the fifth book in the series," she said.

"Oh a series," Hawke smiled, "Is it a good one?"

"I think so, yes," answered Robin, returning her gaze back to the pages.

They all sat in silence again for a long while. Hawke enjoyed the breeze that rustled her hair and listened to the sounds of the water as the Merry cut her way through it.

Just then Zoro woke with a sneeze.

"Someone must be talking about you," Hawke smiled at the groggy swordsman.

Robin got up and approached them, holding out her jacket.

Zoro tensed and his hand shot out to grab one of his swords.

"I said don't stand by me, woman!" he snapped.

Hawke frowned, but Robin didn't seem to be hurt by his remark.

"You'll catch cold like that," she said.

Zoro grunted.

"Only those with weak hearts catch cold," he snapped, his hand still clenching the sheath of his sword.

Robin shrugged and returned to her chair.

Hawke watched as Zoro relaxed his hand, let go of his sword and returned to his nap. She wished he could be a little more trusting of Robin, but she knew he would accept her when he was ready.

Hawke sighed, took her braid out and began redoing it. She stretched out her legs and then repositioned herself so that she was sitting with her legs to the side. The heel of her foot gently touched the sheath of one of the swords, but Hawke didn't notice.

Zoro opened an eye, and then closed it again.

Robin glanced over and caught both these actions and smiled to herself.

_I'll have to keep an eye on those two_, she thought, _they'll provide much amusement, I'm sure._

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

The next day they discovered an island populated by one man and a huge flock of goats. They had thought the man was on the verge of death because Chopper identified him of having a heart condition. But the old man was as lively as ever and, after a battle with nine marine ships, they set out again. Leaving with the promise that they'd meet the old man on the sea again.

They were soon wrapped up in another adventure when they found themselves sailing into the Rainbow Mist. The very same one that Robin had been reading about! Hawke had volunteered to watch the ship by herself while the rest of the crew went shopping on Ruluka Island, but Zoro had stayed behind with her. She had been enjoying a pleasant afternoon, when suddenly a huge galleon had drifted into the harbour and Luffy, Usopp and Robin had returned with a short old man named Henzo to go investigate it. Then the Mist had appeared and Henzo had sailed them right into it. The world inside the Mist was an endless ocean of shipwrecks and murky waters. They had run into some children who had called themselves the Pumpkin pirates and who, it turns out, had been stuck in the Mist for fifty years even though they hadn't aged a day. They had thought that they were going to be stuck in the Mist for good, when suddenly, a huge tower had fallen into the Mist, connecting it with the outside world. But before they could use this tower to escape, it was blown up and they fell into despair again. The explosion threw the sea inside the Mist into a frenzy and they were going to be destroyed along with it. Then another ship exploded and gave the Merry the wind she needed to sail and they were catapulted out into the real world again. They appeared over Ruluka Island and fell crashing into the sea. The poor Going Merry was battered to pieces and they couldn't stay to long. They patched her up quickly as best as they could, and then set off again before the marines caught up to them.

Robin had been a great help to them with her knowledge of the Rainbow Mist. Hawke could see that even Zoro was more comfortable around her now.

No sooner had they set off, when a huge galleon fell from the sky and nearly crushed them. Luffy had found a map to Skypiea and Robin told them what she knew about the island that floated up in the sky. Nami thought it was impossible, but then the logpose needle began pointing up into the sky. And you can never doubt your logpose on the Grand Line, so even she became curious about this Sky Island.

To gather all the information they could about Skypiea and to find a way to get up into the sky. Luffy, Zoro and Sanji were sent down in makeshift diving suits to salvage the giant ships logbook.

But when the guys were underwater, an aggressive salvager showed up wanting to salvage the galleon for himself. They almost came to blows, but were interrupted by a sea turtle the size of a continent and some terrifyingly huge shadow giants. Hawke had never rowed so fast, she thought her arms were going to fall off but she didn't care, as long as they got away from those giants!

After all those shenanigans, the crew finally docked in Mock town.


	31. Chapter 31: Storytelling

**Chapter 31**

**Story Telling and Bird Hunting**

"What's wrong with this town?!" exclaimed Nami and Usopp, clinging to each other for support.

They had docked in a harbour full of other pirate ships.

Hawke watched the people on the peer as they fought and squabbled with each other.

"Well, this'll be fun," said Luffy excitedly as he left the ship, "There's a lot of different people around here."

"Seems like a fun town," the swordsman smirked and followed the captain.

Nami leaned out over the rail.

"Not good. Can we trust those two to come back without causing trouble?" she muttered.

"Well this town is pretty rough," said Usopp, "The chances of that happening are pretty slim."

"That's not good!" exclaimed Nami, jumping off the ship and running after the two men, "Luffy! Zoro! Wait!"

Hawke smiled and turned to Robin.

"I was thinking of getting some new clothes and asking around about Skypiea," she said, "Do you want to come?"

Robin smiled and got out of her chair.

"I think I will join you," she said.

The pair of them made their way down the dock and into the city.

"There are pirates everywhere," muttered Hawke as they walked through the busy streets, "I don't see anyone who looks like a normal citizen."

"It would seem that this is where pirates come to unload all their treasures," replied Robin.

They spent the afternoon going from shop to shop. Hawke found a few nice new sets of clothes and some polish for her knives and sword. Robin bought much more clothes than her, then wanted to get some more books.

As they were looking through a small bookstore, Hawke saw a title that caught her eye. She picked the book off the shelf and wiped the dust off the spine so she could read it clearly.

"The Spirit of the Sky and Other Tales of the Ancients," she read.

_The Spirit of the Sky?_ She thought.

She felt like she'd heard that somewhere before.

Robin came around the shelves and joined her.

"That one looks interesting," she said, reading the title over her shoulder.

"Yeah," mumbled Hawke, still trying to remember where she'd heard the name, "I'm getting this. Are you ready to go?"

Robin nodded.

After paying for their items, the pair emerged out onto the street.

"Where to now?" asked Hawke.

The archeologist looked around.

"Perhaps we should find some information now," she said.

Hawke nodded.

There was a pub just down the street from where they were presently standing.

"How about starting there?" she suggested.

Robin nodded and the pair entered the pub.

Hawke followed the archeologist as she made for the bar at the back of the room.

They put their bags down and each took a stool.

Robin ordered them some drinks and began talking with the bartender.

"Do you know anything about the Sky Island that is said to be near here?" she asked.

The chatter that had been going on in the bar since they'd entered suddenly stopped.

Hawke stiffened and looked back at the other tables.

Everyone was staring at them.

"We must have touched a nerve," she muttered.

But then the bar filled with laughter.

"They're looking for the Sky Island?!"

"They believe in those stupid stories?"

"What idiots!"

Hawke felt her face flush and heard Robin turn on her stool.

"Listen, ladies," a man stood up and approached them as the bar quieted, "Don't believe those stupid stories about dreams. You sound just like that old man Cricket!"

Hawke's ears perked up.

"Cricket?" she asked, "Who's he?"

The man turned to her.

"Some crazy guy who was kicked out of Mock Town for telling those kinds of stories all the time," he said, taking a swig from his mug.

Robin turned back around to face the bar.

"Where is he now?" she asked.

The man squinted his eyes at her.

"What do you want with him?" he asked, "Why don't you stay here. We're fine enough company."

A bunch of men began cheering.

"Uh… Robin," Hawke didn't like the looks they were receiving, "Maybe we should go."

But Robin had turned her attention back to the bartender.

The man looked over to Hawke as she spoke.

"Aww," he laughed, "This little sparrow is nervous. Stop scaring her, you mangy bastards!"

Some more laughter was heard around the bar.

The man went over and leaned down in front of Hawke. She coughed as his beer scented breathed blew into her face.

"You look mighty pretty to be in a place like this without a man," he sniggered, "How about I protect you?"

Hawke stared over the man's shoulder at Robin. She was still conversing with the bartender in a low voice.

The man didn't seem to notice that Hawke was ignoring him and he leaned closer, his eyes drifting down away from her face.

"Now what price does your lovely company cost?" he leered at her, licking his lips.

Hawke jumped back off her stool and thrust her hand inside her jacket, grasping the hilt of a knife.

"You want to buy me?!" she spat, "What kind of woman do you think I am?!"

The man downed his drink and cackled.

"I guess she's pretty expensive," he said, turning towards the rest of the bar.

Hawke felt her face flush and she glared at the man. She cast another glance at Robin.

She saw the bartender pass the archeologist a roughed up looking piece of paper.

"Thank you," she heard Robin say as she passed the bartender some coins.

The man turned as he heard her speak.

"Oi, how about you?" he sneered, "The little sparrow seems to be a bit pricey, but I'm sure you would be kind enough to spend an evening with me?"

Robin stared at him.

Hawke saw that other men were beginning to stand and approach the bar.

"Robin," she whispered, motioning to the growing number of dangers.

The man laughed again.

"A robin and a sparrow!" he leered at the other men, "We're lucky today aren't we lads?"

Menacing laughs were heard around the room.

"I believe it's time for us to leave," Robin looked at Hawke and tilted her head towards the door.

Hawke nodded and picked up her shopping bags. She swiftly dodged around the man and made for the door.

"Hey where are you going, sparrow?" the man grabbed her arm, laughing.

Hawke gasped as she was jerked back and felt his hand close around her waist.

Just then, an arm sprang out of the man's neck and wrapped itself around him. Hawke watched as it pulled back and heard a crack as he was bent nearly in half. His body fell to the floor with a thump.

Hawke smiled her thanks to Robin, who was standing behind her.

"What was that?!" another man shouted, "Get them!"

There was a sudden rush of men at the two girls.

Robin crossed her arms and muttered, "Clutch!"

Hawke watched as all the people in the bar were taken down just as the first man had been.

"Let's go," said Robin, quickly moving towards the door, "Thank you for the information," she called back to the bartender.

Hawke followed the archeologist to the doors. As Robin exited the bar, one of the handles on Hawke's bags slipped and her book fell to the floor.

"Oops," she muttered as she bent down to pick it up.

She reached for her book and felt a hand grab her waist again.

"I don't take kindly to being attacked, little girl," a menacing voice came down from above her.

Hawke tensed and pulled out one of her knives.

She spun around, catching her elbow on the man's arm and pushing it off her. Then she flipped her dagger around and hit him right between the eyes with its hilt.

The man stared at her with a dumbfounded expression on his face, then he sank to the ground, unconscious.

"And I don't take kindly to strange perverts harassing me!" she scolded him.

She picked up her book, glanced around at the shocked faces of the few that remained standing, and then pushed through the doors after Robin.

The archeologist was a little way down the street and Hawke had to jog to catch up to her.

"Thanks for that, back there," she panted when she caught up.

Robin smiled.

"We have to look out for each other, don't we?" she asked.

Hawke smiled and nodded.

"So what did the bartender tell you?" she asked.

"He told me the whereabouts of the man named Cricket," Robin said, "And he gave me a map of this island as well."

Hawke's eyes widened.

"How did you manage to get all that information so quickly!" she gasped.

"I've been developing that skill for years," the archeologist said softly.

"Wow!" Hawke was genuinely impressed.

They walked the rest of the way back to the Merry in silence.

As they approached the ship, they could hear Nami shouting about something from way down the dock.

"It sounds like they got into some trouble," smiled Robin.

Hawke laughed and the two made their way onto the deck.

"Things are lively here," Robin called as she walked up the gang plank, "What's all the excitement about?"

Hawke followed Robin onto the ship.

"Oh!" she heard Sanji exclaim, "Welcome back Robin-chan, Hawke-chwan! Would you like some food? Would you like to bathe?"

Hawke chose to ignore his comments.

Then she saw Luffy and Zoro, who were sitting being treated by Chopper. They looked like they'd had a severe beating.

"What happened to you guys?!" she exclaimed, running up to the upper deck.

"Got into a fight with some pirate," said Luffy, "But it's done now."

Hawke rolled her eyes at her brother.

"Oi, Hawke," he said, smiling up at her, "Did you go somewhere with Robin?"

"Yep," she smiled, "We went to get clothes, some provision and some information about Sky Island."

"That's right!" shouted Nami, pointing, "It was you Robin! You're to blame for telling us about Sky Island! If it doesn't exits, we're throwing you overboard!"

There was a sudden squeak as Chopper got frightened at Nami's rage and jumped over the railing.

"Chopper!" Hawke gasped, running over to the rail.

"Oi, Chopper!" she heard Zoro yell.

The swordsman jumped over the upper rail and plunge after the sinking reindeer.

"Phew," Hawke sighed, "He'll be fine."

She got out the rope ladder and threw it down the side. Zoro surfaced, saw the ladder and began swimming towards it.

Hawke turned her attention back to the rest of the crew.

"Be careful around her for now…" Usopp was saying, "Actually just stay away from her altogether. Nami's had a rough day."

"But we found some really useful things!" Hawke cut in.

Robin smiled at her and then turned to go into the ship. As she walked, she called over her shoulder.

"Here you go captain," she said.

A hand appeared out of the rail in front of Luffy, it was holding the map.

"Oh, a treasure map!" exclaimed Luffy excitedly.

"What's this?" asked Usopp, coming to look over the captain's shoulder.

"It's a map of this island," said Robin, "The picture of the town on the left is where we are, Mock Town. And on the opposite side, there's an X right?"

Usopp nodded and pointed the X out to Luffy. Hawke heard Zoro climbing up the ladder and went over to help him.

"Apparently an outcast lives there," she told the crew over her shoulder, taking Chopper from Zoro's hands so he could lift himself back onto the ship.

"An outcast?" asked Usopp and Luffy.

"His name is Montblanc Cricket," said Robin, opening the door to the ship, "A man who was chased from this town for speaking about dreams. It makes sense, don't you think?"

She smiled and closed the door behind her.

Luffy laughed.

"Alright! Let's go check!" he said.

Hawke retrieved a towel and proceeded to dry off Chopper. The poor reindeer was still gasping for air.

"I thought I was a goner," he panted.

"Jeez," grunted Zoro, wringing out his shirt, "You made me exert myself."

"But Nami was-" Chopper began.

But at the mention of her name, the navigator flew into another rage and Chopper buried himself in Hawke's towel.

"Careful," Hawke laughed at the doctor.

She toweled him off and put him back down on the deck.

"Thanks for going after him, Zoro," she said, handing the towel to him, "I was just about to jump over."

The swordsman grunted and dryed off his hair.

"It's better that you didn't," he said.

"Are you okay?" she asked, giving him a worried glance, "You didn't strain anything did you?"

Zoro grunted.

"I'm fine," he snapped.

Hawke smiled held out her hand.

"Here," she said, "I'll go hang that up to dry."

Zoro shot her a glance, then draped the towel over the railing.

"I got it," he said.

Hawke blinked, then smiled.

"Thanks," she laughed, picking up her bags and making her way to the door of the ship.

As she approached it, Sanji came out carrying three cups of tea.

"Would you like something to soothe you, Hawke-san," he said in his suave voice.

Hawke smiled and took a cup.

"I would love some, thank you Sanji," she said.

The cook's face brightened and he went off to search for the other two women.

Hawke made her way to her room and put away her things. She took out the book she'd bought and brushed her hand across the cover.

"The Spirit of the Sky…" she muttered, "Where have I—,"

Suddenly the connection was made in her brain and she remembered.

"Oh!" she exclaimed, "The whiskey jacks in Alabasta! They said that I was the daughter of the Sky Spirit!"

She still dismissed this idea as impossible, but her curiosity was spiked and she sat down at her table.

Taking the tea Sanji had made for her, she opened the book and turned to the first page.

The title page of the story was decorated with a beautiful picture. There was a scene of a gorgeous blue sky filled with Millenium Dragons soaring around in it. The area at the bottom of the page was covered by a lush green garden and a beautiful woman could be seen sitting by a pond. Beside that, there was a dark cave with a mysterious robed figure standing at its mouth. And above all this, on a background of a midnight blue sky, there was a mass of swirling golden streaks and lights. The lights seemed to be scattered randomly, but as Hawke looked at the picture longer, she realised that they were organised into the shape of a man's face. And in among the golden swirls there were small forms of black birds flying around.

"This is absolutely gorgeous!" she gasped.

She turned the page and read the title of the first story that went along with the mural.

"The Legend of the Spirit of the Sky," she mumbled.

Just then the entire ship began to shake.

"Wh- What's going on?" Hawke exclaimed as she dropped the book and it hit the floor.

She began to hear awful sounds, as if someone was screeching their fingers across a chalkboard.

The tea cup rattled in its saucer and Hawke pushed it back from the edge of the table so it wouldn't fall.

She quickly picked up the book and put it on her bed, then she sped up onto the deck to see what was going on.

She was greeted by the sight of a huge ship floating off in front of them. It seemed to be being torn apart by something. Just then another wave of the awful noises shook the Merry.

"What's happening?!" she shouted, covering her ears.

"We're going to be torn apart if we stay here!" she heard Usopp scream above the noise.

Hawke looked around. She saw Nami was standing on deck as well.

"Full speed ahead!" the navigator commanded, "Get out of range of his voice!"

"Who's voice?" Hawke muttered.

Then she looked back at the ship in front of them and saw a large ape-man shouting into a microphone.

"He's doing this?!" she exclaimed as she ran to help Usopp hold down the deck boards that began coming loose.

They sailed the Merry out of the monkey-man's voice range as fast as they could. Luckily there was minimal damage to the ship. Hawke and the rest of the crew helped put up a few more patch boards on the poor little ship before they got to land again.

They sailed around the island to the east and found Montblanc Crickets house.

Hawke gasped as she saw a huge palace appear on shore.

"Is this Montblanc Cricket really loaded or something?" Usopp exclaimed.

"Take a closer look," grunted Zoro.

Luffy jumped ashore and ran over to the palace.

"What?!" he shouted, "It's just a board!?"

Hawke stared.

"So he only has half a house?" she muttered as the Merry sailed in to shore, revealing the huge fake façade stuck onto the miniature brick house behind it.

"What kind of dreams did he get kicked out of the town for?" Nami turned to Robin.

"I don't know the details," said the archeologist, "But appartenly he claimed that a mountain of gold resided somewhere on this island."

Nami's eyes lit up.

"Gold!" she cried, "Dig, Chopper! We're going to find it!"

The pair leaped from the ship and Chopper began tearing up the ground with his antlers.

"Hello, anyone home?" Luffy opened the door to the house and walked in.

"Oi, Luffy!" shouted Usopp, jumping down to shore and following the captain, "You can't just go barging into people's houses like that!"

The rest of the crew descended and started looking around. Nami caught sight of a book lying on a stump and read the story out loud. It was a book about the Liar Norland and his stories of the city of gold.

Hearing that story reminded Hawke of the one she had been reading and she quickly went back to the ship to retrieve the book. As she climbed back on board, she saw Robin was sitting on her chair, reading.

"You're not going to have a look around?" Hawke asked as she crossed the deck.

Robin looked up.

"I think I'll wait until Montlanc Cricket makes himself known," she said.

Hawke shrugged and went to her room. She picked up the book and returned out on deck.

Suddenly, she heard a commotion over by the house and turned to see Sanji fighting with a large, shirtless man! Then she saw the man fall onto one knee and then collapse. Chopper ran over and had them carry the man into the little house.

"Well it looks like he's made himself known," said Hawke, turning back to Robin, "But I don't think he'll be talkative for a while."

The archeologist looked up and nodded.

"Have you begun to read that?" she asked, seeing the book in Hawke's hands.

"I was, but I got interrupted," Hawke smiled, "It has the most beautiful pictures in it!"

She opened the book up to the right page and handed it over to the archeologist.

"My my," said Robin, "This is quite beautiful."

She turned the page and glanced up at Hawke.

"Would you mind if I read it out loud?" she gave the scout a small grin.

Hawke's eyes brightened and she sat down on the deck by Robin's chair.

"Of course!" she said happily.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

"The Spirit of the Sky was not feeling very content," Robin began in a soft voice, "He had not felt content in five hundred years. He did not know why he was not happy. After all, he ruled over the entire sky! He should be very happy. But he wasn't."

"He flew through the skies to find his friends and first creations, the dragons, (and there's a drawing of a Millenium Dragon)," the archeologist put in, holding up the book so Hawke could see, "But the dragons only knew that they were happy flying through the air. The Sky Spirit flew with the dragons, but he was still not happy. So he left them and flew down to an island. There he encountered some little black birds who were busy playing in a pool of water."

""I am not happy." The Sky Spirit said to the little birds. And the birds replied "You must tell your mate that you are not happy. They will make you feel better." The Spirit didn't understand the little bird. "What is a mate?" he asked. "A mate is one who is yours and who you belong to." The little bird replied."

""How do I find one?" The Spirit asked the little bird. "You will feel it in your chest when you see them," said the little bird. The Spirit of the Sky flew off in search of a mate. He flew around the whole world and landed on an island that was covered in green fields and small pools. He walked over the land and saw a woman kneeling at the shore of the pond, she had golden hair and sapphire eyes. The Spirit looked at her and felt his chest give a large THUMP!

""You're my mate! My love!" he cried excitedly and ran over to the woman. But to his surprise, when he put his hand on her arm, it went right through her. "What's this?!" the Sky Spirit roared, "Why can't I touch my mate?!". Then he realised that, despite all his shouting and grabbing, the woman had not moved or looked up at him. She sat still, gazing into the water. "She can't even see me!" the Spirit realized and flew away in confusion and sadness."

"Now he was even less content than before! He flew back to the little black birds and told them of his trouble. The little bird thought for a moment. "It's because your mate is a human." It said finally, "Humans cannot see the greater beings." The Spirit sank into despair, "Why must I have a mate whom I cannot touch and who cannot see me?" he cried. A dragon who happened to be flying overhead heard his kings cry and flew down from the sky. He told of a human who could hear the language of all things. The Spirit knew that this person could help him and commanded the dragon to take him to this human."

"They landed on an island covered in caves. The dragon pointed to one and said, "That is where she is." The Spirit went into the cave and saw a woman wearing a dark robe. "You are the one who speaks the language of all things?" asked the Sky Spirit. "I am" replied the woman, "Why does the Spirit of the Sky visit a mere human?". "Make it so that my love can see me!" demanded the Spirit. "I can do this," said the woman, "But it will come at a price. You may enter the body of a human and control it at your will, but you will only be able to as long as that human lives! While you are inside the human, you will not be able to leave it! Only once that human dies will you be free again, and you will not be able to reenter a body for one thousand years!""

"The Spirit thought very hard about this and decided to pay the price. "Make it so!" he told the human. And she gave him a bottle. "Go to a village near the one you love and drink this. Then you may go find her and she will see you." The Spirit was overjoyed and flew back to the island covered in fields and drank the bottle. As he did so, a man was walking down the road very near to the Spirit and the Spirit was able to enter this man's body. With his new body, the Sky Spirit went to his love. She fell in love with him at first sight and they lived happily and had a strong, handsome son.

The Spirit lived in his human body until it was very old and frail. And when the human died, he returned to the sky as its ruler once more. But every thousand years he yearns yet again for a mate he can love, and so he returns to take a human form and to live among us. His offspring live on as links between the sky and the earth, balancing the world and keeping it from descending into chaos. Protecting the fragile link between the Spirit of the Sky and the Earth he holds dear."

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Robin lowered the book into her lap.

"Well that was a wonderful story," she smiled.

Hawke blinked.

"Huh?" she stood, "That's where it ends?"

Robin looked down at the pages.

"It would seem so," she said, closing the book.

Hawke stared.

"Well it was good," she smiled.

"Yes," said Robin, holding the book out to Hawke, "It was very interesting."

Hawke took the book and ran her hand over the cover.

_Every thousand years, the Sky Spirit takes a human form and has a child_… that's what the whiskey jacks in Alabasta had said.

_And this story says the same thing,_ Hawke thought, _there seems to be some continuity here_.

She briefly thought about the possibility of having a spirit possessed man as her father, but immediately shook her head and frowned.

_That's impossible,_ she told herself.

She looked up at Robin.

"Thanks for reading it," she smiled up at the archeologist.

"No problem," said Robin, "I was interested in that book as well."

Just then Chopper jumped up onto the deck.

"Hey Robin, Hawke," he called, coming over to them, "The old man is awake now, and Sanji's finished cooking dinner."

Robin smiled and stood.

"Shall we go join them Hawke-san?" she looked down at the scout.

Hawke gave her a distracted smiled and stood up.

"Yeah," she said, patting Chopper on the head, "I'm hungry!"

As the trio entered the small house, they were greeted with a party already in full swing. Hawke saw that there were two large monkey-men as well as the shirtless old man she'd seen before. She blinked. The monkeys were the salvager, whom they had met before arriving on this island, and the other was the one who had been singing at them and destroying the Merry as they had sailed here!

"What are you doing here?" she asked one of the monkeys.

"We're this old man's partners!" he exclaimed and threw back his head in a laugh.

Hawke glanced around the room. Robin had picked up an old looking logbook and was reading it off in a corner. The rest of the crew were having the run of the house. Luffy and Usopp were dancing around, Chopper and Sanji were watching them and laughing. Nami was sitting and enjoying her food and talking to Cricket. Hawke looked at the man dubbed as a fool by the townspeople. He still had no shirt on and it looked like he had a chestnut on his head. He stood quite tall, taller than Sanji, and he had a booming laugh that filled the entire room. Hawke smiled and went over to sit beside Zoro, who was drinking with the singer monkey.

"Damn! The rum tastes good today!" Cricket shouted as he poured a bottle into his wide open mouth.

"Eat up! Eat up!" Sanji was calling, "There's a whole course of pike and still more to come!"

Hawke smiled as she saw Usopp trick the salvager monkey into eating a tabasco spiked rice ball.

"So it sounds like things worked out," she said as she sat down next to the swordsman.

"Yeah," Zoro grunted, "The old man Cricket said he'll help us get to Sky Island by riding this current that shoots ships into the sky."

Hawke's eyes widened.

"That sounds dangerous!" she exclaimed, then she smiled, "But it's wonderful that he'll help us!"

Just then she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Come sit with me, Nee-san," Hawke turned as saw Cricket smiling down at her.

"Calm down, old man," snapped Zoro, grabbing Hawke's arm and pulling her away from him before she could react.

Cricket laughed and turned to Nami, repeating his pick-up line to her.

"He's having a good time, I see," laughed Hawke, "Thanks Zoro."

She smiled as the swordsman removed his hand.

"What a creep," snapped Zoro, downing the contents of his mug.

"Don't go thirsty!" laughed the salvager monkey as he handed a mug to Hawke.

She took it and thanked him.

"Robin just read me an interesting story," she told Zoro as she took a sip.

"Oh?" he raised his eyebrow, "The one about the liar? I was wondering what you two were doing while we were over here."

Hawke shook her head, a confused look coming back onto her face.

"No," she said, "I bought a book back in Mock Town, the story was about the Sky Spirit."

Zoro lowered his mug and gave her his attention.

She smiled and blushed.

"It's just a book full of old legends," she continued, "But this one made me think of something the birds in Alabasta said to me…"

"Huh?" grunted Zoro, "Birds? When did you get to talk to them?"

The monkey-man lost interest in her story and turned his attention to Luffy, who was now bouncing around the room on his inflated stomach.

"Before I met up with you guys in the square after taking on the Baroque Works agents," Hawke said, turning back to Zoro, "I never told anyone… but whenever I talk to any birds, or reptiles it seems, though they only whisper... Anyways, they call me Princess, and it sounds like they mean it."

Zoro choked on his beer.

"What?!" he spluttered.

"Yeah," Hawke mumbled bashfully, "Well, I asked the whiskey jacks about it and they said that I was the daughter of the Sky Spirit, and what they told me about… it was repeated in this story today…"

She trailed off and began playing with the toe of her shoe.

"I'm just not sure what to make of it," she muttered when Zoro didn't reply, "I mean, it's impossible, but I keep hearing the same things over and over again…"

She felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up.

Zoro had put his arm around her and pulled her a little closer to him.

"Don't worry about it right now," he muttered into her ear, taking a gulp of beer, "It's a party, so don't let that story get you down. Have fun tonight."

Hawke felt her cheeks turn beet red.

"Oi! Marimo!" seethed Sanji as he swept across the floor over to them, "Get your dirty hands off Hawke-san!"

Hawke felt her cheeks going even redder as attention was drawn towards them. But she felt Zoro's hand clench tighter as he shouted back at the cook.

"You got a problem, swirly eyebrows?" he returned.

Hawke felt another arm reach around her and she was pulled the other way.

"Of course Hawke-san would rather be caressed by a gentleman who knows how," Sanji grinned smoothly and presented a plate of fresh food to Hawke with his other hand.

"You bastard!" growled Zoro through clenched teeth.

Hawke stood up, brushing both mens hands off her.

"That's quite enough," she snapped down at them, "Sanji, thank you for the food. Shouldn't you be keeping an eye on the rest of it?"

She pointed to the stove, where Luffy was gobbling up the still cooking fish that were sizzling on it.

"Oi Luffy!" shouted Sanji, "Get away from there!"

He quickly ran to fend off the insatiable captain.

Hawke sighed and sat back down again.

She picked up the plate Sanji had given her and began to eat. As she took her first bite, she felt warm breath on her shoulder.

"Who does that cook think he is?!" Zoro growled.

He was sitting quite close to Hawke. She saw he was leaning on his arm extended behind her back in a protective gesture.

"Zoro!" Hawke laughed, blushing, and pushed his face away, "Your breath stinks!"

The swordsman let her push him away and gave her a smirk.

"A man can't enjoy his beer?" he asked slyly.

Hawke stuck her tongue out at him then smiled.

"Alright," she said, "Tonight I'll enjoy the party."

She took another sip of her drink and pushed her worries out of her mind. This was surprisingly easy when she noticed Zoro stayed in his protective sitting position. Though he moved a few moments later when he called for more beer, Hawke felt her face remain hot for some time after and her heart was beating hard against her rib cage.

As the night wore on, Montblanc Cricket became more and more unstable on his feet and began singing along with Luffy and Usopp. As he was stumbling around the house, he suddenly stopped in front of Robin. The archeologist was still reading the logbook.

"The skull's right eye…" Cricket spoke menacingly, hovering over her, "… is where I saw the gold."

The room suddenly became quiet as everybody looked over at the man.

"Gold!" Nami sprang up, stars in her eyes, "Where's the gold?"

There was a silence.

"Blotted with tears," continued Cricket, "Those were the last words Norland skull's right eye is where I saw the gold. That same day, he was executed. Even after coming to Jaya, I have no idea what those words mean. The skulls right eye… maybe it's the name of a ciy that used to be here. Or maybe it was a metaphor for his own inevitable death. The blank pages that follow tell us nothing."

He raised his bottle and tilted his head back.

"That's why we dive!" he exclaimed passionately, "We have a dream down there on the ocean floor!"

"That's right!" shouted the salvager monkey, picking Usopp up on his shoulders.

"We're gunna fly!" said Luffy through a mouthful of fish.

Hawke laughed.

"Not if you keep eating that much," she teased him, "We won't even make it off the water!"

The whole room erupted in laughter and the party continued.

Hawke leaned her back against the wall and watched her friends having fun. She smiled as she watched Sanji use his feet to keep Cricket away from Nami again, and as Chopper watched, wide-eyed, as Luffy fit five whole pike into his mouth at once. Her eyes drifted to Usopp, who was riding around on the salvager monkey's shoulders, singing a song and waving his arms. Then to Robin, who was still reading off in one corner.

She turned her head to watch Zoro and the singing monkey chuckling at the other's shenanigans. She felt the heat rise in her cheeks again as the events that had just transpired between Sanji, Zoro and herself came back to her mind.

Just then she heard Cricket's voice speaking again and she pulled herself out of her thoughts.

It seemed that Robin had finished with the logbook because Cricket had it in his hands and was reading out of it.

"Today I arrived in Jaya," he was saying, "May 21, 1122. Upon landing on the island, we heard a most peculiar bird call coming from the forest and the sound of a large bell striking."

Hawke's ears perked up and she went over to sit beside Luffy, Chopper and Usopp, who were also listening.

"The sound of that great golden bell was carried far and wide as if signaling the prosperity of a great city of the past."

Zoro came and joined the group, sitting between Luffy and Hawke. Chopper came over to Hawke and she lifted him onto her lap.

"The fleeting sound that, upon this vast sea for a great many years, a prosperous civilization bloomed," continued Cricket, "For us who have lived but mere decades, there were no words to describe it!"

He stood, reciting the words by memory.

"We were spellbound by the ringing of that bell!"

He finished with a triumphant yell, raising his fists to the ceiling. Luffy and the monkeys quickly followed.

Hawke giggled.

"They're quite passionate aren't they?" she asked the reindeer on her lap.

"Yehaa!" shouted Chopper, jumping up and down.

Hawke let out a laugh.

"How wonderful!" exclaimed Nami, "A golden bell!"

Usopp gave Cricket a sly look.

"What's the deal, Ossan," he said, "So you _do_ like Norland!"

Cricket smiled and pulled something off of the shelf behind him.

"Look at this!" he said as he placed the object on the ground and removed its covering.

A gold shine lit up the room.

"Wow!" squealed Nami, "A golden bell!"

"So what's "very large" about that?" asked Usopp dubiously.

"This isn't the bell he wrote about," said Cricket as Nami stroked the bell lovingly, "They're just bell shaped ingots. I found these three on the ocean floor."

He revealed two more of the little gold bells.

"Wow!" Hawke gasped with wide eyes, "I've never seen so much gold in one place before!"

"It proves that there was a civilization here at one point," Robin spoke for the first time, "Ingots were designed to divide up gold into gram masses. Meaning that there was also trade and commerce here."

"Right," nodded Cricket, "And the call of that stranged bird-,"

He lifted the cover off a larger object that the salvager monkey had brought to the circle.

A golden sculpture was revealed. It was in the shape of a bird with an unusually large head and beak.

"Woah there's more!" exclaimed Usopp.

"This one's big too!" said Zoro.

"Ah, it's beautiful!" sighed Nami.

"Golden bells and birds," said Sanji, "They might be symbols of ancient Jaya."

Cricket lit a cigarette.

"I'm not sure," he said, blowing out a cloud of smoke, "But this might have been part of an ancient molding."

He put his hand down on the bird statue.

"This is a Southbird," he said, "And it lives right here on this island."

"Southbirds were used on ships since ancient times to-," the salvager monkey stopped mid-sentence, his eyes widening.

The two monkeys and Cricket froze.

"Oh damn!" they shouted in unison.

"What's wrong?" asked Hawke worriedly.

"This is bad!" exclaimed Cricket, "You guys need to get into the forest! The forest to the south!"

The crew looked at him with confused expressions.

"What're you talking about, old man," muttered Luffy, "You lost it?"

"You need to capture one of these birds right now!" shouted Cricket.

"How come? What's up?" asked Usopp.

"This bird?" asked Sanji, "Why?"

"Listen carefully!" said Cricket, "Tomorrow you are going to sail for the Knock-Up Stream! It's directly south of this cape. How are you going to get there?"

Hawke's eyes widened and she gasped.

"There's no way of telling which way's south!" she exclaimed, "The logpose only shows us where the next island is!"

Nami stood up.

"I get it," she said, "Since we're sailing to a body of water and not an island, we won't have anything to tell us the right way!"

Cricket nodded.

"You'll need to make use of this bird's special trait," he said, motioning to the statue, "You can use that to determine your own position."

Luffy suddenly started laughing.

"That makes Zoro less evolved than an animal!" he chuckeld.

"You're the last one who can tell me that!" shouted Zoro, springing up at Luffy.

Hawke giggled then turned to Cricket.

"How will the Southbird help us navigate?" she asked.

"No matter how large the stretch of land is," said Cricket, "Or how much the sea tosses and turns, its body will remain pointing in a single direction. Anyways, without that bird you'll never be able to set out from here. And as for Sky Island, you'll miss your only chance to get there!"

"Wah!" shouted Luffy,"Why're you telling us this now?!"

"Don't stand around griping!" snapped Cricket, "There's no time, you have to go!"

He began pushing the crew out the door.

"It's the middle of the night and you want us to go tramping around in the woods?!" shouted Usopp, resisting with all his might.

"You forgot these," Cricket threw three nets out, one landed on Usopp's head, "We're gunna get to work on your beat-up ship. In hind-sight we really shouldn't have had that party."

The crew set off. Zoro and Sanji dragged Usopp after them.

"How can you say that now?!" shouted Usopp, his feet digging into the ground.

"Now listen!" Cricket shouted after them, ignoring Usopp, "You have until morning to catch a Southbird and bring it back here!"

The crew made their way into the forest.

"My stomach's so full I can't walk," mumbled Chopper, rubbing his tummy, "I might not be able to catch a bird."

"Let's hurry up and catch one so we can go back to drinking," snapped Zoro.

"How did things get so out of hand," whimpered Nami.

Hawke looked around at the trees.

"It sure is dark in here," she mumbled.

"Damn," whimpered Usopp, "Couldn't we do this in daylight?"

"Oi, where's the bird?" Luffy turned to Zoro.

"If we knew where it was we wouldn't all have to come out here!" snapped the swordsman.

The crew formed a circle.

"The only clue we have is that it's got a weird call," said Luffy.

"And it looks just like that statue we saw," put in Sanji.

"Are there really birds that look that screwy?" asked Zoro, looking over his shoulder.

"It doesn't look screwy!" snapped Hawke.

"Uh, sorry," muttered Zoro, scowling at the ground.

"But saying it has a weird call is too vague," whined Usopp, "How are we supposed to tell?"

Sanji took a step back.

"Well he said once we were in the forest we would be able to tell," muttered the cook, "That Ossan..."

Just then a spine chilling call echoed through the forest.

The crew froze.

"Whoa! That was a weird call!" exclaimed Chopper and Luffy.

"That's it," said Hawke, "That's probably the Southbird!"

"Yosh!" smiled Luffy, obviously getting excited.

"Now that we're here, I guess we gotta do it," muttered Zoro.

"We got three nets," said Sanji, "Let's split into three teams and search."

"Right!" the group responded.

Luffy and Chopper set off in one direction. Sanji, Nami and Usopp went in another. And Hawke, Robin and Zoro went off in a different direction.

They had been walking for a few moments in silence, when suddenly they heard a ruckus coming from not so far away.

"I hear screaming," said Robin as she stepped over a log.

"It sounded like Usopp and Nami," said Hawke, climbing over a stump.

"Leave 'em," muttered Zoro.

Just then he took out a sword and slashed at the air behind Hawke.

"Eek!" she squeaked, "What are you doing?!"

As Zoro sheathed his sword, a centipede fell to the ground.

He picked it up.

"A centipede," he muttered, "And it's freaking huge."

Hawke heard Robin make a clicking sound with her tongue.

"You really shouldn't go killing everything we come across," she said to the swordsman, "The poor things."

Zoro dropped the bug.

"It's his fault for coming after us," he grunted and started walking away.

"But-," started Robin.

"Zoro," called Hawke, "That's where we just came from."

Zoro froze and stiffened.

"Damn!" Hawke heard him mutter.

Just then they heard the strange call again.

Hawke cupped her ears as she tried to figure out where the call was coming from.

"It's singing about how lovely the night is," she smiled, then she pointed into the forest, "That way."

"So you _can_ understand birds," said Robin as she climbed over some large roots.

"Yes," smiled Hawke, trying to find a place to grab onto to hoist herself over, "And thanks to you I know I can understand reptiles too, although I can only hear their voices as whispers."

"Fascinating," she heard Robin's voice from over the log.

Hawke reached up, trying to reach a place where she could grab onto.

"Here," she heard Zoro's voice behind her.

Turning, Hawke saw him holding his hands down as a step for her.

"Thanks, Zoro," she said, blushing, "I guess I'm a little to short for this root."

She hoisted herself over the obstacle, getting a little added push from Zoro, and made it to the other side.

"This way!" called Robin, who was a little ways ahead, "And watch out for that quagmire!"

"Okay, thanks!" called Hawke.

She climbed around the innocent looking patch of earth and began to follow Robin. But before she had gone three steps, she heard a squelch and some cursing coming from behind her.

"Really Zoro?" she muttered, turning back to help him, "She just told us where it was."

Grabbing a large branch off the ground, she went back to the quagmire and found Zoro shoulders deep in oozing muck.

"Here," she grunted, holding the branch out to him, "I'll pull you out."

"Just shut up," muttered Zoro as he used the branch to pull himself out of the mud, "Don't say anything to the others."

Hawke sighed.

"You really need to listen to directions, Zoro," she said as they followed the archeologist.

"Hmph!" huffed the swordsman, giving her the cold shoulder.

Hawke smiled and rolled her eyes.

She pushed a branch out of her way and froze.

"I hear something," she said nervously, peering into the darkness.

"Look out!" she heard Zoro shout from beside her.

Hawke jumped out of the way as centipedes began falling out of the trees onto their heads.

"Eww!" she shouted and ran to catch up with Robin, "This is disguting!"

"It seems the insects don't like us in their forest," the archeologist said as Hawke reached her side.

Hawke gasped as a large number a giant crickets jumped out of the bushes in front of them.

Zoro immediately swiped at them but they kept coming, wave after wave.

"There's no end to this," he grunted, "Why do you have to keep popping up? You oversized cricket army!"

He began bonking the bugs on the head with his swords.

"Stop getting in my way?" he shouted in frustration, "Do you think you can beat me?! Eh?!"

Hawke shivered as more crickets appeared.

"I think it's the Southbirds," she said as another call rang through the forest, "They're calling on the insects to fight. They're saying they have to protect the forest."

Robin looked up into the trees.

"We can hear it, but we can't see it," she said.

"It's no use," grunted Zoro as he fended off the next rounded of crickets, "Let's meet up with the others and see if they had any luck."

It took another half hour of stumbling through the forest to find the rest of the crew. When they finally did, it was plain to see that no one had had better luck than them.

"We didn't see a single one," said Sanji, smoking a cigarette.

"We saw one," said Luffy, "But there were bugs all over the place so we couldn't get close!"

"We ran the whole time," panted Chopper, who was lying on the ground, obviously worn out.

"Damn!" said Usopp, "Seven of us and we pull up zero. Get it together you guys!"

"Oi!" snapped Sanji.

Nami collapsed onto the ground.

"I can't run any more," she groaned.

Just then Hawke heard a rustling sound.

She looked up and gasped.

"There it is!" she pointed.

The others looked up to see a Southbird hopping around on a branch high above them.

""You'll never catch me, stupid!"" said Chopper, "That's what he's saying."

"What!" shouted Usopp, "You came here just to gloat?! I'm gunna shoot you down!"

He took aim, but before he let his shot loose, two arms appeared around the bird and pinned its wings to its body. Then a third arm appeard and threw the bird down to the ground.

"If I can see it," said Robin with a smile.

"Oh, don't hurt it though!" said Hawke, running over to the fallen bird.

She knelt down as it struggled against Robins arms.

"I'm sorry about this," she said, "But we'd like you to help us sail our ship."

"Unhand me!" crowed the bird, "This is downright rude!"

"You were the one attacking us with huge bugs all night," snapped Hawke, picking up the bird, "_That_ was rude."

"Hmph!" grunted the bird.

The crew began making their way back to Cricket's house.

As she walked, Hawke held the bird under her arm.

"Are you comfortable like this?" she asked it.

"As comfortable as I can be in this situation!" was the snarky reply.

Then there was a pause.

"Are you the Princess?" the bird suddenly asked her, in a much less obnoxious way.

Hawke blinked and saw Chopper stop and look over his shoulder.

"What does he mean, Hawke?" the doctor asked.

"Huh?" asked Luffy, "What are you guys talking about?"

Hawke blushed.

"Nothing," she stammered, "The Southbird is just saying things."

"You are, aren't you?" the bird cooed.

Hawke looked down at it.

"No I am not!" she snapped, "Now please don't talk like that."

The bird gazed up at her through one eye.

"Yes, your highness," it replied smugly.

Hawke glared down at it as Chopper came and walked beside her. Hawke noticed the rest of the crew giving her weird looks.

"He's just calling me names," she laughed awkwardly.

"I'll cook you, you damn bird!" shouted Sanji, snapping into a rage, "Don't call Hawke-san names!"

"It's okay Sanji," Hawke put her arm protectively over the bird, "It does't matter."

"It matters to me," mummured the cook, but he turned and began walking ahead again.

Hawke felt something pulling on her pant leg. Looking down, she saw Chopper motioning for her to bend down.

"Are you really a princess?" he whispered excitedly into her ear.

Hawke flushed.

"No, I don't think so," she whispered back.

"Yes she is," cawed the bird quietly.

Hawke shot another glare at the bird.

"Wow!" whispered Chopper.

"Hey, don't go telling everyone that," Hawke looked worriedly down at the reindeer, "Please? It probably isn't true."

Chopper was looking up at her through shining eyes.

"Okay," he gasped excitedly, skipping along beside her.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

They finally made it back out to where Crickets house stood.

"Oi Ossan!" called Luffy, running across the grass, "We caught the bird-,"

Hawke gasped.

The entire place was trashed! The walls of the house were crumbling, the Merry was even more wrecked than before, and the monkeys and Cricket were unconcious, each of them covered in blood!

"Diamond-headed Ossan!" shouted Luffy.

"What the hell happened?!" gasped Nami.

Sanji jumped into the water to retrieve the singing monkey, who had been floating offshore.

"Damn, who did this?" he seethed, "Oi, gimme a hand!"

Chopper ran over and helped them out of the water.

"Ah!" shouted Usopp, "The Going Merry! How could this happen?! Who did this to her?!"

Hawke knelt over Cricket.

"Hey, are you okay?" she put her hand on his shoulder.

Suddenly Cricket started spluttering.

"So.. sorry," he gasped, coughing.

"Ossan!" Luffy ran over to him, "You awake?"

Cricket didn't seem to hear him.

"I'm sorry," he said again, looking up at Hawke, "We were here, but we couldn't do anything."

He started to raise himself.

"But still," he groaned, "There's still time!"

"Cricket!" exclaimed Hawke, "Stay still!"

"We still have time to strengthen your ship!" Cricket went on, ignoring her.

"Hold it, Ossan," said Luffy, "First tell us what happened!"

Cricket stopped, then shrugged his shoulders

"Nah, it's nothing," he coughed, "Don't worry about it. It doesn't matter anymore. More importantly, did you-?"

He looked up and saw the Southbird, which Hawke had handed to Zoro before she had knelt down.

He was holding it upside down by its feet.

"Zoro!" exclaimed Hawke, rushing over and taking the bird back, "Don't hold him like that!"

"Thank you, your majesty," the bird cooed as she righted it under her arm.

"Stop it!" she snapped.

Cricket smiled.

"That's it," he said, "Good job catching the Southbird. That'll do fine."

Just then they heard Nami call.

"Luffy!" she shouted, "The gold was stolen!"

Everyone stiffened and looked back at Cricket.

"Bah," he said, waving his hand, "It doesn't matter. Just forget it. More importantly you guys-"

Usopp stamped his foot down.

"What does it matter?!" he shouted, "Old man, you spent ten years beating up your body diving day after day for that gold!"

"Shut up kid!" snapped Cricket, "It doesn't matter, this is our problem. Got that?! The three of us have our duties. Your ship is in no state to sail right now! We have to finish by morning, we're not giving up on your voyage! Listen, I swear I'll get you to Sky Island!"

Just then Zoro walked over to the Merry and stared at a place on her hull.

"Oi Luffy," he said and pointed.

There was a pirate mark painted on the wood, but Hawke didn't recognize it.

"Bellamy's mark!" gasped Nami.

"Huh?" asked Hawke, "Who's Bellamy?"

She didn't get an answer though. Luffy stood up quickly and lowered the brim of his hat over his eyes.

"Luffy?" she asked nervously.

"Need a hand?" Zoro called over.

"Nope," said Luffy quietly, "I'll be fine."

Nami gasped.

"No Luffy!" she cried, "Don't do anything stupid! There's only three hours left until we sail!"

Luffy stood silent. Then he turned to Robin.

"If I follow the coast," he said, "Will I reach the town from this afternoon?"

"Yes," Robin replied calmly, "You'll reach it."

Luffy nodded and began walking.

"Hey kid!" shouted Cricket, "Where are you going? You better not be messing with our business! Do you know who you're going-?"

Zoro suddenly put his sheathed sword in front of Cricket's face.

"If you want to stop him," said the swordsman, "You'll have to use this."

Hawke's eyes widened and she turned back to Luffy.

"Be safe," she said, even though she didn't know exactly what was going on.

Luffy cracked his knuckles and turned to leave.

"I'll be back by dawn," he said over his shoulder.

"Three hours Luffy!" Nami called after him, "If you delay us any more than that, it'll be your fault that we lost our chance to go to Sky Island."

Hawke watched as Luffy disappeared behind the bend in the shoreline.

"Who's Bellamy?" she asked, turning back to the others.

"He's the guy who beat those two up earlier," snapped Nami, "He's an idiot, but we shouldn't worry, since Luffy's actually going to fight him this time."

Hawke blinked. She still didn't quite understand, but as long as Luffy was going to be okay, she felt better.

"Well we should get started then," she said, motioning to the Merry, "We have lots of work to do."

The crew helped the monkeys and Cricket bandage their wounds, and then everyone began working on fixing up the poor Merry.

Hawke was helping Usopp nail boards together to act as patches for the larger holes in the ship. She finished her section and carried it onto the deck where Zoro was fixing the main mast.

She gave the patch to one of the singing monkey's henchmen so he could plug up a hole in the hull and turned back. As she crossed the deck again, Nami came out of her room and called down to Zoro.

"Why didn't you go with him?" she asked.

"Huh?" Zoro grunted irritably, "What's with you? First it's "don't fight", then it's "fight", then "don't go", then "go"."

"That's not what I meant," snapped Nami, "You got beaten up too, didn't you?"

Hawke glanced at Zoro.

"What does she mean, Zoro?" she asked.

The swordsman stuttered, then glared back at Nami.

"Beaten up?" he snapped, "It's not like they were standing in our way. A fight that leaves you with only pity… brings only pain."

Hawke blinked at his words. _A fight that leaves you with pity?_ she thought, _they pitied this Bellamy guy? Is that why they didn't fight him before?_

Then she recalled Luffy's reaction when he'd seen Bellamy's mark on the Merry.

_No,_ she thought, _Luffy thought it wasn't worth fighting him before. He must be a coward who was making fun of Luffy and Zoro._

Nami stared down at the swordsman.

"What does that mean?" she retorted, "Retarded, are you?"

"Shut up!" shouted Zoro, "Why don't you get lost?! You're in the way!"

"What was that?!" Nami fumed back at him, "You never listen to a word I say!"

Hawke saw this was going to escalate if she didn't stop it quickly.

"Hey, Zoro," she interrupted, "Can you help me lift the next patch I'm making? It's a little too heavy for me."

Zoro turned to her and shrugged.

"Sure," he grunted, casting a dark look over his shoulder.

Hawke rolled her eyes and made her way down to the shore, Zoro following her.

"So he wasn't worth fighting…" she said quietly once they had reached the place Hawke had been working.

Zoro turned to her and smirked.

"So you understand the meaning of a fight?" he said with and air of satisfaction.

Hawke gave him a serious look.

"That doesn't mean I agree with it," she said, "You guys were really beaten up then."

She looked at the ground and busied herself with making the next patch.

"I was worried that you guys had bitten off more than you could handle," she mumbled, "But I guess if it's that way, either of you could've easily beaten him."

Zoro grunted.

"Well, I hope Luffy doesn't take too long," she sighed, gazing up into the sky at the fast sinking moon.

"He won't," said Zoro, looking down at her.

Hawke smiled and blushed.

"Here," she grunted, lifting the patch easily, and handing it to the swordsman, "And your welcome for saving you from Nami."

Zoro gave her another smirk as he took the patch and headed back to the ship.

"Thanks," he called over his shoulder.

Hawke smiled and got back to work.


	32. Chapter 32: Skypiea

**Chapter 32**

**Skypiea: There and Back Again**

After a late start, thanks to Luffy, the Merry set off heading due south. They relied on the Southbird and the two monkey's ships that flanked them on either side to make sure they kept on their course

Hawke waved goodbye to Cricket as Jaya disappeared from view.

"Okay, listen up!" the salvager monkey called over, "We'll reach our destination at eleven o'clock, just like the old man said! The location of the Knock-Up Stream is different every time. So we need to get there before it happens to determine its location! We're a little behind schedule—Are you listening to me?!"

Hawke glanced back at Luffy. He was playing with the Southbirds head, moving it sideways and laughing when it snapped back forwards when he removed his hands.

"Luffy!" she snapped, coming over and slapping his hand away, "Leaving him alone!"

"He really can't face anywhere but south," laughed Luffy, "He's like a compass!"

The bird cawed angrily at the captain.

"What did he say?" Usopp looked from Chopper to Hawke.

""I'll look some way other than south and throw you jerks off course!"" exclaimed Chopper, ""At least I would if you didn't have the Princess on board!""

"Eh?" laughed Luffy, "Vivi isn't here, stupid bird."

Hawke shuffled her feet and glared at the Southbird.

But Luffy was already distracted, swinging from the sail and flying across the deck.

They sailed on for a few hours in relative comfort.

"Oi you guys!" shouted the salvager monkey, "We've got night approaching from the southwest! It's the cumuloregalis cloud!"

"Really?!" exclaimed Nami, "But its ten o'clock! It's earlier than we expected!"

The sky above them suddenly darkened and the waves became rougher.

"What the-?" Hawke hung onto the rail beside the Southbird.

"We're gunna sink!" screamed Usopp as the Merry tossed them around her deck.

The salvager monkey leaned over the rail of his ship.

"The explosion's about to happen!" he called, "Stay alert!"

"Explosion?!" whimpered Chopper.

Suddenly, some grappling hooks flew out and clamped onto the Merry's rail.

"We're going to take you into the whirlpools current!" called the salvager monkey.

"And then what do we do?" shouted Nami.

"Do what you can!" was the reply, "Get as close to the center of the whirlpool as you can and don't back out!"

"What whirlpool?" asked Luffy, leaning forward, "Where?"

A huge black hole suddenly appeared in the ocean in front of them.

"Th- that whirlpool?" Hawke stammered, staring into the roaring, black depths.

"Hang on," she heard Zoro grunt from behind her.

"We're getting sucked in!" screamed Usopp.

"Don't worry Nami-san, Robin-chan, Hawke-san!" called Sanji, "I'll protect you!"

Robin came to stand beside Hawke.

"I've never seen a whirlpool this large," she said calmly.

Hawke was in awe of and also scared by how relaxed the archeologist was at a time like this.

Luffy was sitting out on the rooster comb, waving his hands in the air.

"Let's go to Sky Island!" he shouted into the whirlpool.

The crew stared at the hole in the water that lay before them.

"Okay!" called the salvager monkey, "You guys'll have to handle yourselves from here on in!"

"Thanks for bringing us here!" Luffy called back to them, waving.

Hawke looked down at the waves hugging the Merry's hull. The current was getting stronger, they didn't have any control over their course now…

"An island from a dream within a dream!" shouted Luffy, "I could never pass up a great adventure like this one!"

Hawke shot a scared look at her brother, but he was having the time of his life. She glanced ahead and set her emotions.

_If this is where Luffy wants to go, let's go!_ she thought.

"Hey guys," snapped Zoro, "While you were wasting your time whining," he pointed ahead, "We've entered the whirlpool."

Hawke felt a scream of terror rip from her throat as the Merry plunged head first into the whirlpool.

She ran backwards away from the rail, trying to escape from the roaring black water that was suddenly shot up above them. She jerked to a stop as her back collided with something.

"Careful," she heared Zoro's voice in her ear as he pushed her off himself and steadied her.

The feeling of his hands on her wasit did wonders to make her calm down.

Just then, there was a jolt and Hawke felt her feet being lifted off the deck.

"Th-the water!" Hawke stammered through her newly mounting fear.

"We're fallinnnngg!" screamed Usopp.

But then, just as suddenly, there was another jolt and the sea became as calm as a mirror.

"Th-the giant whirlpool…," mumbled Usopp, "What's going on?"

Hawke looked over the edge.

The whirlpool had disappeared! There was no current at all in the water below them. She saw a small patch of bubbles pop on the surface of the water just off the bow.

"No," she muttered, then she raised her head to the crew, "It's already started! The bottom of the whirlpool was stopped by the sea floor."

"Y- you don't mean-," whimpered Nami.

Suddenly, the ship gave a jerk and began to rise.

"Everyone brace yourselves on the ship or get inside the cabin!" shouted Sanji.

"The sea's gunna explode!" screamed Usopp.

Hawke picked up Chopper, who had been trying to hang on to the mast, and took a firm hold on the rail as she pressed herself against the corner of the cabin.

"Hang on tight," she told the reindeer as he clung to her waist.

There was a tense moment. The water stopped rising, the boards of the Merry groaned and everyone held their breath.

And then the water heaved and shot upwards! The Merry was caught up in the current and began sailing vertically up the Knock-Up Stream! Hawke clung to the rail with both hands. She was being pressed into the wall with immense force.

"What the hell is going on!?" shouted Usopp.

"The ship's sailing straight up the surface of the water stream!" Sanji yelled back.

Luffy let out a loud whoop.

"This is awesome!" he shouted as they were catapulted up into the clouds.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

The world they entered when they burst through the bottom of the clouds was the most amazing thing Hawke had ever seen.

Everything was made out of clouds! There was even a "sea" of cloud that they could sail on and large, marshmellow-like clouds that Luffy and Chopper could bounce around on. As they were admiring the beauty of their surroundings, they were attacked by a man who was skating through the air. But they couldn't find the strength to defend themselves, their bodies weren't used to the dramamtic change in air pressure yet. Thankfully, a knight, whose name was Gan-fal, flying on a bird (that ate a horse devil fruit) saved them.

They met a girl named Conis, who took them to her house and showed them about the culture of the people who lived up on Angel Island. She told them about a neighbouring island called the Upper Yard, a place where God and his priests lived and it was forbidden for anyone to go there. This immediately sparked Luffy's interest and he declared that that's where they would go.

As they were preparing to leave, they were accosted by the White Berrets, the police of the Sky Island. And after Luffy got into a fight with them, they were labelled as high class criminals. The crew made to escape, but Sanji, Luffy and Usopp went to get some food for their journey.

While the guys were gone, Hawke, Nami, Robin, Chopper and Zoro had been taken away by a sky shrimp and placed on a sacrificial pyre in Upper Yard, along with the ship. They decided to explore the surrounding forest. To their surprise, they discovered that the Upper Yard was actually a part of Jaya, the island where Cricket was living! It had been dislodged and shot into the sky by the Knock-Up stream and had been caught in the cumuloregalis cloud. They also discover that this part of the island was where the City of Gold was situated! Having collected this information, they made their way back to the sacrificial alter and met up with Luffy, Sanji and Usopp.

It turned out that Chopper had been attacked while guarding the Merry and Gan-fal had come to his rescue. The doctor was fine, but the knight had sffered a serious blow and they moved himinto the forest so Chopper could take care of him better.

They had a wild bonfire and party that night and were joined by wolves of the forest. Gan-fal recovered a little and told them of the history between the people of Skypiea, the Shandorans and the Skypieans.

The next morning Hawke headed off with half the crew to go to the golden city and the other half of the crew got the Merry off the pyre and out of Upper Yard.

While on their way to the gold city, Hawke and Luffy got separated from the rest of the crew after being attacked by a giant python. While trying to find their way through the forest, they encountered the leader of the Shandorans, Wiper, and engaged in a battle. Hawke tried to help defend Luffy, but she couldn't keep up with Wiper's speed. Their fight was interrupted when Luffy was swallowed by the giant python. Hawke followed after the snake, trying to get it to spit Luffy back out. During her pursuit, the snake made its way to the edge of the island to drink. And it so happened to emerge right beside the Merry. Hawke could see Nami and a small girl drifting nearby on the waver and called out to them. But just then, the python began roaring and jerking itself around like something was causing it pain and it tore off back into the jungle with Hawke hot in pursuit.

After a while, the python began chasing a Southbird that was flying through the forest. Hawke was amazed but not quite surprised to see that Zoro was hanging from the birds claws. As the snake lunged up at the bird, it dropped Zoro in order to escape. Hawke threw caution to the wind and swiftly used her wings to fly up and catch the swordsman and brought him safely to the ground. But in doing so, she lost sight of the python.

The pair made it to some ruins that were being guarded by a priest called Ohm. They were soon joined by Wiper and Gan-fal. Zoro had just taken on the priest when the python appeared again. It was chasing Nami and the little girl from before. Hawke and Gan-fal tried to save them, but they both ended up getting swallowed up by the python themselves.

Hawke wasn't quite sure what happened in the events that followed. She heard a huge booming sound and then she was tossed around inside the snake's enormous body. Somehow she, Nami and Gan-fal were able escape through the snake's mouth, but they left Luffy, and the little girl, whose name was Aisa, stuck inside.

Nami hid as Gan-fal and Hawke joined Zoro, Robin and Wiper in facing Eneru, the "God" of Skypiea who had appeared while they were inside the snake. Eneru told them about his plan to destroy Skypiea as soon as he got the golden bell. Gan-fal attacked Eneru, but was immediately struck down, and when Robin told him that he couldn't destroy the land haphazardly since he didn't know where the bell was, Eneru shot her through the head with a bolt of lightning, claiming that he hated smart-alec women.

Hawke rushed over to Robin as Zoro attacked Eneru, but he too was electrocuted. Wiper managed to get some seaprism stone onto Eneru to block his powers and hit him with an impact dial. They had thought the lightning man was defeated, but when the seaprism stone was taken off, he used his electrical powers to restart his own heart and struck down Wiper.

Hawke and Nami were the only ones left standing and he decided to invite them to join him in escaping the doomed Sky Island. He had taken an interest in Hawke and her wings and he knew Nami was weak. The girls decided that it would be safest for them to go with Eneru, and they could use the time to try and find a way to save the others.

Eneru led them to an enormous flying ship that was powered by electricity and the gold that he had gathered from the city.

As the ship took off, Luffy appeared, having escaped from the python, and he engaged Eneru in a fight. Hawke and Nami were both stunned when Enel's attacks had no effect on Luffy, but soon realized that rubber nullified electricity. Luffy seemed to be getting the upper hand, but the Eneru liquified some gold and attached it to Luffy's hand, sending him plummeting over the edge of the ship. Hawke quickly dove after her brother, flying down to him and catching him before his body hit the stone ruins.

Luffy was too heavy for Hawke to carry so they ran towards the beanstalk that sprouted out of the middle of the ruins. Hawke followed Luffy as he began speeding up it. As they neared the top, Nami appeared riding her waver and warned them to get back to the Merry because Eneru was going to destroy the whole of Skypiea at any moment.

Just then, a huge spherical thunder cloud began descending on Angel Island. They watched as it sank closer and closer to the clouds until it engulfed them completely. Then there was a huge, bone-shaking blast and the Angel Island, where Conis lived, was disintergrated in an enormous blast of energy, leaving only a black hole in the clouds.

Hawke covered her mouth and stared, wide-eyed.

"I hope everyone got out of there okay," she whispered, stunned.

"Conis said she warned them," Nami whispered back, equally horrified.

Hawke looked up and saw another, larger ball of electricity beginning to form.

"Upper Yard is next!" she cried to Nami and Luffy.

The world shook around them and the lighting still rained down from the sky.

Nami turned to the captain.

"We have to get out of here!" she shouted.

"No," said Luffy, "I have to ring the bell! For the diamond-headed Ossan! He needs to know the City of Gold is up in the sky, or he and his friends will keep in diving into the sea until the day they die."

Hawke clenched her fists. She knew that they should be running back to the Merry, but she was going to stay with Luffy! And she had a feeling Nami wasn't about to abandon them either.

"Luffy..." whispered the navigator.

"I'm not stopping until I hear the sound of that golden bell!" shouted Luffy.

Nami thought hard, looking up at Eneru's ship. It hadn't moved for a while now. She nodded to herself and then gave Hawke a message to relay down to Zoro, Wiper and Robin, who had recovered and were at the bottom of the beanstalk.

"If we cut down this stalk in that direction," said the navigator, "I can ride the waver right at him!"

She pointed at Eneru, who had reached the golden bell, sitting on a cloud just a little ways away.

Hawke nodded and squeezed Luffy's shoulder.

"You can make it," she said with a nervous smile.

Then she jumped and flew down to the bottom of the beanstalk.

"We need to cut this down!" she shouted as she landed, "If it falls in that direction," she pointed, "Nami can get Luffy up to Eneru and the bell!"

She caught Wiper staring at her outstretched wings. But when he saw her looking at him, he averted his eyes, though he had an intense look of concentration on his face, like he was trying hard to remember something.

They looked up and saw the second ball of thunder clouds forming above them, growing larger and larger by the second.

Zoro immediately started to slash at the base of the plant. He managed to cut one root, but then was struck by a stray bolt of lightning.

"Zoro!" Hawke cried, running into the ruins and up to the swordsman.

Wiper, who had been staring at Hawke again with his mouth open, suddenly jumped into action and hit the stalk with an impact dial. The plant shook, then cracked and began to fall.

They watched as Luffy and Nami rocketed off the top of the stalk, flying right at Eneru. Suddenly, Luffy pushed Nami down into a cloud and changed direction.

Hawke gasped as he swung back his arm that still had the golden ball on it and flung it into the huge ball of electricity that was still growing above them, disappearing inside it.

"Luffy!" she screamed.

They looked on in horror as lightning began flying out of the sphere. Suddenly, a crack appeared, and then another.

Hawke understood what was happening.

"The gold ball on his arm!" she cried, "He's rerouting the energy and preventing it from destroying Upper Yard!"

Hawke stood beside Zoro as Wiper ran up to where they were and watched as the sphere exploded in a flash of white light. The force from it blowing away all the storm clouds that had gathered, revealing a blue sky.

Hawke searched the expanse of azure.

Where was Luffy?!

"There!" shouted Usopp suddenly, "Its Luffy! He's alive!"

Hawke watched as her brother made a swing at Eneru.

"Go Strawhat!" Wiper shouted, falling to his knees, "Ring it! Light the fire of Shandora! The raven has come!"

The fake-lightning god had turned into a giant being made of pure electricity and swung at Luffy. But his attack still had no effect on the captain and he ran up Eneru's arm and kicked him in the face. Suddenly, Hawke saw a glint of gold.

"Watch out, Luffy!" she shouted, despite knowing that he couldn't hear her.

The golden trident Eneru used was sticking into Luffy's back, almost impaling him! And the weight of his arm was pulling it further and further into his body.

They watched as Luffy twisted and jumped out of Eneru's grasp, pushing himself off the trident's spike.

He started to fall, his body being weighed down by his arm.

"No!" screamed Usopp, "Luffy's falling!"

"He was our only hope," Wiper whispered in defeat, his hands falling to the ground at his sides, "I don't understand… the raven-,"

He looked over at Hawke.

She gritted her teeth.

"He still _is_ your only hope," she snapped, spreading her wings.

She caught sight of the Shandian gaping at her again as she lept up and propelled herself through the air.

He began shouting something after her.

_What's his deal?_ a fleeting thought flew through her mind, _he has wings, why are mine so interesting?_

But she had more pressing matters to focus on.

Speeding up to her captain in the blink of an eye, she caught him under his arms.

"I'm not letting you fall," she grunted into his ear.

"Yeah, Hawke!" Luffy exclaimed with a wide grin, "Let's kick his ass!"

He threw back his arm, still covered in the gold ball, getting ready to take a swing at the lightning fruit eater.

Hawke was flying directly towards Eneru. He was standing on top of his flying ship, still in his huge, lightning being, form. She could feel Luffy's weight shift as he stretched out his fist behind her. A glint of gold caught her eye from behind the fake-kami. _The bell!_

"He's not getting his hands on that!" she said and flew faster.

Just then they heard a sinister laugh.

"You fools! I see that an angel has turned against her god," Eneru was shouting at them, "There can only be one solution to this unholy treason."

"Dodge!" shouted Luffy.

Hawke dropped herself down, out of the line of fire. But there was no lightning shot. She looked up at Eneru. He was watching her, his finger still pointed directly at her.

"No!" she gasped.

"Ten thousand volts," she heard the god say calmly.

A bolt shot from his finger. Hawke felt a jolt and a burning sensation in her left shoulder. She screamed as pain pierced through her.

"Hawke!" shouted Luffy, still swinging his arm out behind them.

She forced herself to fly higher.

"Go Luffy!" she gasped as she used all the strength she could muster to throw him out into the air, "You have to beat him! You have to ring that bell!"

Luffy glanced back at her as he flew forward.

"Got it," he smiled at her.

Hawke forced her facial muscles to pull her lips into a smile.

Then she was falling.

She felt weightless, floating down through open space. Watching dreamily as Luffy's golden fist was flung at the huge electrical being, she smiled as it bowled over Eneru and flew on. She watched as it made contact with the giant, golden bell. The sound of the bell's peal jolted through her, she felt each note as it swung back and forth.

_What a beautiful sound_, she thought as she fell.

Her vision was hazy and she could feel her heart fluttering in her chest. Her wings had returned to tattoo form, though she didn't remember doing so. She brought her hand to her shoulder and felt the warm, sticky stain that was spreading across her shirt.

_Blood?_ she thought, _from a lightning strike?_

Hawke suddenly became aware of something flapping in the air in front of her face. She slowly raised her hand and grabbed it.

_My necklace…,_ she eventually recognized the object in her hand.

The silver chain had scorch marks on it near the pendant.

_It must have been hit by the lightning,_ she thought.

But something wasn't right.

She looked more closely at the pendant.

It wasn't there…

"Where is it?" she gasped out loud, looking frantically around her.

But the movement of her head shot pain through her neck and shoulder. She winced and looked down at her wound.

There was a deep gash on her chest, right above her heart. Blood was oozing out of the wound, staining her white tank top. Hawke narrowed her eyes and saw a small black and purple fragment sticking out of the edge of her skin. She reached up and pulled it out, lifting it in front of her face.

It was a piece of the pearl!

As Hawke registered this information, the pearl fragment dissolved into dust between her fingers and disappeared into the air.

"It… It's destroyed…," she laughed happily, "It's gone!"

Just then, Hawke was shocked out of her thoughts as her body made contact with something.

"Ouch!" she groaned, looking up, "Wiper!?"

She was in the warriors arms; he had run up the stalk and caught her and was carrying her back down at an alarming speed. She looked down. Wiper was wearing those skating dials and was making his way down to where the rest of the crew had gathered.

"Thank you for all you and your friends have done," said the Shandoran with difficulty, "You have brought the end of the war, Raven."

She closed her eyes and smiled, she wasn't sure she had heard the Shandian right, but he seemed grateful to her and the crew.

Luffy had won!

"Hawke!" she heard Zoro's voice.

She felt herself being lowered onto the ground and opened her eyes.

She saw Zoro on his knees, leaning protectively over her. He was looking at something behind him. Hawke raised her eyes and saw Wiper glaring at the swordsman.

"Thank you," she gasped weakly, looking at the warrior.

He gave her a curt nod, then turned and left.

"Are you okay, Hawke?" Zoro brought his attention back to her shoulder, "This looks like it hurts."

"It does," Hawke gave him a pained smile.

Zoro cast a worried glance at her then called over his shoulder.

"Chopper, get over here!"

Hawke heard the light footsteps of the reindeer as he ran over.

"Oh my," Chopper said as he appeared in her line of vision, "This is serious."

He bent over her shoulder and examined her wound.

"There are fragments of shrapnel in her body," Chopper said, stepping back, "I'll need to operate now so they don't do any more damage."

As he said this, a hot streak of pain shot through Hawke.

She screamed, clutching her shoulder as her body began to writhe.

"What's wrong with Hawke?" Usopp's voice came faintly to her ears.

"Something seems to be causing her great pain," Robin's voice followed.

Hawke's vision was blurring, the pain was bringing tears to her eyes, but she lunged out her hand and grabbed the first thing she felt.

"Hawke!" she heard Zoro's voice near her ear.

"It's… my… necklace," she managed to say, gasping for air, before her body began convulsing once again.

She remembered this pain. It was the same searing, piercing, pain that she had suffered through for months. The pieces of the pearl must have been shot into her body by the force of Eneru's attack. They were dissolving inside her body like the one she had picked out with her fingers!

"Necklace?" Usopp's voice came through her foggy thoughts, "The one that was made out of that formula? What if it's doing something to her body?!"

"We need to get those out of her shoulder now!" exclaimed Chopper, in full doctor mode, "Usopp, bring me my bag, I'll need my scalpels."

A thought pushed its way to the front of her mind. Hawke reached out her hand again. She clenched her jaw as another wave of pain twisted her body.

"Put me… to sleep!" she gasped, her voice coming out in ragged spurts, "Luffy... can't see me… like this!"

There was a sudden silence around her.

Then she heard a shuffling sound and felt a prick on her arm.

"It'll take a few moments to start working," Chopper said, "But I'll wait to operate until you're asleep. For now I'll go check on Wiper."

Hawke heard his footsteps move away.

She felt herself being lifted into someone's arms.

She was jostled a bit, but then she was laid down and the movement stopped. Hawke clenched her fists as her body writhed out of her control; the sedative seemed to be taking it's time.

She opened her eyes and tried to see through her tears.

She could see Zoro's green hair above her and saw his mouth twitch into a frown. Robin was sitting near her too. They were both watching her with concerned faces.

Hawke tried to give them a reassuring smile, but another spike of pain shot through her and she screamed instead.

The horror of what was happening to her, and the fact that it was happening again, finally overwhelmed her and she began clutching and tearing at her shoulder.

"Get it out!" she screamed, her fingers digging into her wound, "Get it out of me! It can't happened again! Not again!"

"Hang in there," Zoro said worriedly as Robin sprouted a hand out of the ground to restrain Hawke's clawing hand, "You should be asleep soon."

Hawke didn't remember much that happened after that. The sedative hadn't been strong enough and it took much longer than expected for her to lose consciousness. She was lost in a haze of pain and agony. Every now and then, she would hear her friend's voices around her, but she could never hear what they were saying. The pain came in bursts and waves, making her scream and writhe. Eventually, her body gave out to exhaustion and she fell into a sedative induced, dreamless, sleep.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Hawke woke with a start. She could feel a cloth on her forehead and her shoulder was aching immensely.

She let out a small groan as she registered her discomfort.

"You're awake," said a calm, relieved sounding, voice from beside her.

Hawke turned her head and saw Zoro sitting in a chair next to her.

"Zoro," she smiled, "Where am I?"

"We're still in the ruins," said the swordsman, "Luffy's started a party and it doesn't look like it'll stop any time soon."

Hawke blinked lazily. She had to really focus to hear the loud drums and cheering coming from outside the tent.

"I feel very… slow," she muttered and raised her hand, waving it in front of her face.

It felt like the world was moving a little faster than she could register it. But even as she noticed this, the effects seemed to be going away.

"Chopper said you might feel like that," muttered Zoro, "He had to give you really strong sedatives to get you to stay asleep."

Hawke let her hand fall onto her shoulder. She slowly turned her head and looked at her wound, groaning as she did so.

Her shoulder was wrapped securely in a thick bandage.

She focused her attention and closed her eyes.

It didn't feel like anything had happened to her body. Other than the wound itself, there was no new part of her.

"Chopper, you're wonderful," she sighed and dropped her head back onto her pillow.

She heard Zoro move and looked over at him.

"Where's Luffy?" she asked.

"Don't worry," Zoro gave her a concerned smile, "You were unconscious before he showed up."

Hawke let out a sigh of relief and felt her grogginess begin to fade away.

"A party, huh?" she smiled.

She slowly pushed herself up with her right arm.

"Oi, you should stay still," snapped Zoro, getting up and beginning to fuss over her, "You're still injured and probably weak."

Hawke let out a laugh.

"I'm getting up, I'm hungry," she stated.

Zoro looked uneasy, but he helped her to her feet and led her out of the tent.

"I'm glad you're okay," he stammered.

Hawke smiled, enjoying the feeling of his hand on her waist, then she shuddered.

"To think it almost happened again…" she didn't want to think about what might have happened if Chopper hadn't been able to get the pieces out in time.

As they stepped through the cloth covering the door to the tent, a wave of heat washed over them. Hawke's eyes widened as she saw the enormous bonfire that had been lit in the center of the ruins. She looked around at all the people laughing and dancing, smiling as she saw Skypieans and Shandorans sharing their happiness.

"This _is_ quite the party," she laughed as Zoro helped her to a stool at the far edge of the clearing.

The swordsman left, saying something about food and drink, so Hawke sat quiety, watching the festivities.

Sanji and Nami were dancing with the people in front of the fire. Usopp and Chopper were shouting and singing with Luffy, who was stuffing as much meat into his mouth as possible. Robin was sitting quietly with the Shandoran chief and Gan-fal.

As Zoro crossed back through the clearing with a plate of food and two large mugs, Chopper caught sight of Hawke and ran over to her.

"Hey!" he shouted, jumping up onto the table beside her, "What are you doing out of bed?!"

Hawke smiled.

"Its okay, Chopper," she said, "I won't do anything other than sit here. I just didn't want to miss the party."

The reindeer began a thorough inspection of her arm and head. Then he sat back and sighed.

"Well you're not showing any signs of fever or infection, so I guess this is okay," he said, "But make sure you don't move to fast or pick anything up!"

"Aye, aye, Doctor!" Hawke laughed and gave him a small salute.

Chopper immediately blushed and ran to join the dance again.

"Well he seems to be full of energy," Zoro grunted as he put the plate of food on the table and sat down.

"Yes," smiled Hawke, "I think stuff like this is good for him."

Hawke started on the meal.

She looked up and watched Zoro, who had started an arm wrestling contest with a Shandoran. She didn't want to interrupt his concentration, so she just sat and enjoyed observing. She found her eyes wandering to the swordsman's muscular arm as it flexed.

_He really is something to look at,_ she blushed and continued with her meal.

Zoro won the contest and drained his mug triumphantly.

"Ha!" he laughed, "Serves him right for thinking he could beat me!"

"Well of course," Hawke agreed, "No one can beat my- I mean our swordsman!"

She blushed intensely and looked down.

_I cannot believe I just said that!?_ She thought, terrified.

But Zoro only laughed and shot her a proud, happy look, which she meekly returned.

_He didn't mind my slip up?_ she thought, _maybe he didn't hear it._

Thankfully, someone new sat down beside Zoro, across from Hawke.

"I would like to thank you again," Wiper bowed his head stiffly, "We have been waiting for centuries…"

Hawke blinked and sat back, flustered.

The tall warrior seemed strangely humble and in awe of something, it looked very out of place on him.

"What?" she stuttered, "I mean yes, I'm glad your war is finally over!"

Zoro stiffened, but he nodded his head.

"There's no need to thank us pirates," the swordsman snapped, "We were just following our captains wishes."

Wiper eyed Zoro, but then his gaze drifted back to Hawke.

"I'm just grateful that I lived to see you, Raven," he muttered and nodded his head again.

Then, without explanation, he abruptly stood up and left.

Hawke watched him go with a confused look on her face.

"What was his deal?" Zoro snapped, "I'm getting more booze."

Hawke smiled and let out a giggle at the swordsman's sulky expression.

She took the time alone to finish her meal.

"That was delicious!" she sighed happily as Zoro sat back down, across fom her this time.

"I have to admit, this food is pretty damn good," he said, seeming to have gotten into a better mood, "I hope that cook gets some of these recipes."

Hawke nodded, then heard her name called and turned.

"Oiii!" shouted Luffy, running over to her, showing off a big slab of meat, "You're finally awake!"

"Yes, I feel better," she smiled at her brother, "My shoulder's still really stiff though."

"You had me worried for a second when you started falling," smiled Luffy, "But Chopper said you'd be okay."

Hawke blinked, then smiled.

"Of course I'm fine," she laughed.

"C'mon then!" shouted Luffy grabbing her arm and pulling her up, "Let's go dance!"

Hawke felt a wave of pain go through her shoulder and up her neck.

"Ouch! Luffy!" she cried.

"What are you doing, you dumb ass!" shouted Zoro, punching Luffy in the face, making the captain's head fly backwards.

Luffy let go of Hawke's arm as his head bounced back onto his shoulders and she sat down again.

"Sorry, Hawke," he said, a worried look moving aross his face, "I thought you said you were fine?"

"I told you my shoulder was still feeling stiff!" she snapped at him, "Chopper said I can't dance or move too fast."

"Awww," Luffy pouted.

"Just leave her alone!" snapped Zoro.

"Okay, but come dance when you feel better later," laughed Luffy and he ran off.

Hawke smiled and turned back to the table, watching the drummers as they beat out the music.

The next three nights passed in much the same way. Hawke's shoulder felt less sore with each passing day. And by the fourth afternoon she was showing off her dancing skills to the crowds, much to Sanji's delight.

But eventually things calmed down and the crew's thoughts turned to their departure.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Conis and her father showed them the way to Cloud End, the place where they could leave Skypiea and get back to the sea below.

After waving goodbye, the crew faced forward and began thinking about their next adventure. The logpose had the coordinates for the next island, so they were eager to start their journey.

As they passed under the gate and out onto the milky road that would take them down, Luffy took his place on the Merry's head and raised his fists into the air.

"Blue Sea here we come!" he shouted at the top of his lungs.

Hawke smiled and raised her own fist and cheered along with her brother.

They set off down the rollercoaster-like cloud road and heard Conis shout something after them.

"Everyone grab hold, the free fall is about to start!" she called.

Hawke froze.

"F-free fall?" she stuttered.

The Merry shot out into open space.

"What the hell?!" Hawke screeched as they were all lifted off the deck and began falling through the air.

There was a splashing noise from the cloud-waterfall behind them.

Hawke turned to see a huge octopus begin wrapping it's tentacles around the ship.

"What?!" Zoro exclaimed, beginning to unsheathe his swords.

But before he could, they were all slammed back onto the deck.

"Ouch," Hawke muttered, cradling her shoulder.

"Hawke!" shouted Chopper, running over to her, "Are you okay? Let me check your arm!"

Hawke smiled as the doctor examined her.

"It's okay Chopper," she said, "I landed on my right side, and I think it's pretty much healed."

After realising what was happening, the crew enjoyed their slow, floating descent through the clouds. The sound of the bell suddenly broke the silence, ringing through the air.

"They're saying goodbye," Hawke sighed happily, "What a wonderful sound."

She sat at the rail and watched the sky as they slowly descended, enjoying the warm breeze on her arms. . She was wearing a dark blue shirt and a white hair band as well as some blue jeans. Her shoulder had healed enough that she could get her jacket on and off without any discomfort, but right now she had left it in the cabin due to the warm weather.

After a while, she heard Nami shouting about being off course, but she knew that they would figure out what to do when they landed.

_We just need to hope that we land on water_, she thought, gently rubbing her shoulder.

Just then Zoro woke up from a dream.

"We've got a problem!" he shouted, startling Hawke.

She jumped back from the rail and stood ready to attack.

But then the swordsman yawned and laid back down.

"Oh, it was just a dream," he muttered.

Hawke smiled at him and then returned to her place at the rail.

She brought her hand up to her neck. She unclasped the silver chain and held it in her palm.

"It's gone," she sighed quietly, "Gone forever. No one can use it now. That part of my life is finally over."

She felt a warm sensation inside her chest. She had been trying to destroy that pendant for so long and hadn't been able to make a dent on it. Then she had found Luffy and almost forgotten about it. And it turns out that it had been destroyed completely by chance by Eneru's lightning.

"Its funny how things work out," she mumbled to herself.

She had made it her personal mission to destroy the last piece of that part of her life, and now it was gone.

She smiled and held her hand over the railing, dangling the chain out into space. The light from the setting sun sparkled off of it as it swung in the breeze.

_I've no use for this anymore,_ she thought happily.

She slowly let her fingers relax, letting the chain slip lower and lower, until it was clinging to the tip of her middle finger. Hawke took a breath, and drew her hand back, feeling the weight leave her hand. She looked over the edge and watched the glint of silver disappear from view down among the clouds.

"So it's finally destroyed?" asked a voice from beside her.

Hawke jumped.

"Zoro!" she smiled, "You surprised me."

She looked back down at the clouds beneath them. Then she sighed and leaned sideways, resting her head on the swordsman's shoulder. She smiled as she felt him stiffen. She was surprised at her own courage, but she was in a very happy mood, which probably had something to do with it.

"It's finally gone," she let out a slow breath, "After all this time…"

She felt Zoro shift his weight.

"That's good," he stammered awkwardly, "You don't have to worry about it anymore."

Hawke felt her face flush and raised her head, smiling at him. His face was also bright red.

"No, I don't," she laughed, "Now there's no way that formula will be used on anyone ever again!"

Zoro frowned and glanced at her out of the corner of his eye.

"I've been wondering," he started, "But couldn't that scientist just make some more, if he found a way to remember the recipe?"

A shadow passed over Hawke's face. She turned and looked away from him.

"No," she said.

She heard Zoro move.

"But how do you know?" he asked.

Hawke stood still. She hadn't told any of them... she'd been scared of what they would think of her. It was the main reason she didn't want any of them going after the scientist…

"Because he's dead," she said quietly, "I-I killed him."

There was silence.

"What?!" Zoro exclaimed quietly.

Hawke felt a nudge in the small of her back, pushing her forward. Zoro was steering her away from the other's, who were arguing in the doorway to the kitchen, and up to the figurehead.

They stood in silence for a few moments, then Hawke turned back to face him.

"I didn't kill him directly," she started, "With my own hands, I mean…"

Zoro was still staring at her, waiting for her to continue.

Hawke took a breath.

_It's going to be out in the open now,_ she thought, _and if I'd want anyone to know, it'd be Zoro._

"When I said I'd burned the notes on the formula…" Hawke mumbled, "…I really burnt down his entire lab. Not on purpose!" she added hurriedly, holding up her hands, "I started the fire meaning to only burn the notes, but it got out of hand and I barely escaped myself… I found his body in the morning…"

She shivered at the memory and turned her face away, ashamed of what she was admitting.

_How could he see me the same way ever again?_ she thought sadly regretting her words, _he could never fall in love with a murderer…_

Hawke squeezed her eyes shut, trying to keep keep her tears from falling. But despite her effort, a single tear traced its way down her cheek. She reached up to wipe it away, but something beat her to it.

She froze as she felt Zoro's hand softly stroke her cheek, wiping it dry.

"Well that wasn't your fault," Zoro said, turning her face back, his finger on her cheek, "And it all worked out in the end. He got what he deserved."

Hawke felt tears begin to well up in her eyes. She hadn't wanted to admit what had actually happened to her torturer because she'd feared she'd be labeled a murderer. But here she was, being consoled for it! All her suffering caused by that scientist was now over, the formula was destroyed for good. There was nothing to remind her of that time, except her wings.

Hawke let out a sob and flung herself at Zoro chest.

"I'm so happy!" she cried into his shirt, "I'm so glad it's finally over!"

She felt his hand rubbing her back.

"It's alright," Zoro's voice was uncharacteristically soothing.

Hawke let her tears fall until they stopped on their own, then she stepped back, looking at the ground.

"Sorry about that," she mumbled, wiping her eyes with her sleeve.

"No," said Zoro, "Don't be."

Hawke looked up and saw that he was looking at her with gentle eyes. Her heart skipped a beat and she felt her face flush. She quickly looked back down at the deck.

"Well thanks," she mumbled.

Just then Nami shrieked so loud Hawke jumped at the sound.

"The octopus is shrinking!" the navigator was yelling, "Luffy stop bouncing on it!"

Hawke looked up and saw her brother jumping around on the top of the octopus' head. As she watched, he swung back down to the deck.

"What an idiot," growled Zoro, all traces of gentlness gone, "What does he think he's doing?"

Suddenly, there was a wooshing noise and Hawke felt air rushing into her face. Her feet began lifting off the deck and she grabbed onto the rail.

The octopus deflated completely and dropped onto the deck.

Everyone's mouth dropped open as their speed increased and they plummeted through the air.

"Everyone hold on tight!" shouted Luffy, "We're gunna crash!"

Hawke felt a hand wrap around her waist as she clung to the base of the figurehead. Looking up, she saw Zoro leaning over her.

_He's actually holding me?!_ she felt her heart begin to race, _does he want to be closer to me?_

She gave him a cute smile.

Zoro returned her smile nervously, but he tightened his grip as the water came into focus under them.

They landed with a tremendous thud. Water sprayed out on all sides of the Merry as she heaved back and forth, pouring over the rails and washing them across the deck.

Hawke was slammed towards the deck again, but Zoro managed to catch her just in time.

"Thanks," she gasped.

They looked around them as the waves continued to heave back and forth.

"It looks like the Merry made it through," said Usopp, checking the mast and the rails.

"That was so scary," stammered Nami.

"Aww, don't whine," laughed Luffy, pulling the octopus off his face, "We made it down okay."

"Yeah," grunted Sanji, lighting a cirgarette, "And we got to see a wonderful place."

"It was like a dreamland!" exclaimed Chopper excitedly, looking back into the sky, "Do you think we'll ever see it again?"

"Well," said Zoro, "You might see a similar place when you die."

"Not you Zoro," muttered Usopp, "Do you really think you're going to heaven?"

"Shut up!" snapped the swordsman.

Hawke smiled and laughed.

"Don't listen to them Chopper," she called over to the reindeer, "We might see that place again."

The doctor smiled happily at the sky and ran over and hugged Hawke's leg.

She picked him up and the followed Sanji into the kitchen, where the cook said he would prepare some coffee.


	33. Chapter 33: Zoro, Robin, Franky

**Chapter 33**

**The Swordsman, the Archeologist and the Shipwright**

Zoro sat on the stairs and inspected his swords. He scanned the blade, checking for any hint of a scratch, but the smooth surface was unbroken. Then he turned his attention to the hilt. He'd thought it had seemed loose during his last battle.

Sure enough, there was a little jiggle when he gripped the hilt and took a practise swing.

_I'll need to fix that now,_ he thought.

He got up and made his way down the stairs. He was about to reach the door to the bedroom when he heard his name being called.

He turned back, the light of the sunset making him squint.

Hawke was on her knees near the mast, where she had been washing the deck. She was smiling and waving him over.

Zoro's heart beat quickened at the sight of her and he quickly went to join the scout.

"I just wanted to ask you if you could bring me that extra sponge from the kitchen if you're going into the ship," Hawke said politely as he approached.

"Sure," Zoro grunted.

Hawke smiled her thanks to him and returned to her scrubbing.

Zoro stood still for a moment, his mind going back to the time she'd slept for days from exhaustion. He took a step closer to her and put his hand on her head, which was covered in a bandana to keep her hair out of her eyes.

Hawke stiffened and looked up.

"Don't work too hard," Zoro muttered.

The colour rose in Hawke's cheeks but she smiled back up to him.

"I won't, don't worry," she stammered.

Zoro quickly turned away and went into the kitchen.

The stupid cook was in there, but Zoro ignored him and began looking through the cupboards for a sponge.

It had been a few months since they had descended out of the Sky Islands. They had already had some new adventures: namely escaping a marine fortress and having one, no _two_, Davyback fights! But those seemed like a blur to Zoro. He found his mind always going back to Skypiea.

It had been more painful than he had ever imagined when Hawke had been hurt. She had been in so much pain, yet all he could do was sit there and watch! As she had slowly fallen under the influence of Chopper's sedatives, he'd felt anger and fear rise in his chest. If this is what that little pearl amount of formula had done to her, he didn't want to think about what those long months had been like as she was getting her wings.

From that moment, Zoro had vowed to make sure he'd try to protect her even more than he'd already been trying.

Since then, he'd been more forward with his attempts. He'd even punched Luffy in the face for grabbing her arm before it had healed.

"That stupid idiot," he muttered as he found the sponge.

"What did you say, Marimo!" he heard a growl from behind him.

"Nothing, ero-cook," Zoro grunted and left the kitchen.

He had no patience to remain in the chef's presence any longer.

As he came back out on deck, he saw Hawke holding up a sponge that was full of holes and dirty brown water and pouting at it, as if she could make it last a little longer by making it feel guilty.

_No wonder she wanted a new one_, he thought, watching her.

Just then, she turned and saw him.

"Oh thank you, Zoro," she smiled, getting up and running over to him before slipping on the wet deck and falling forward.

Zoro swiftly moved to catch her and lifted her back onto her feet.

"You need to be more careful," he snapped.

Hawke blushed and found her footing.

"Sorry," she mumbled, "I forgot it was slippery... You can let go now."

Zoro started as he realised he hadn't taken his arms of her yet. He quickly lowered them. But Hawke smiled and grabbed his hand.

"After I'm done, could I join you?" she asked, "I need a little help polishing my sword."

Zoro nodded stiffly.

"That'd be nice," he muttered.

Hawke laughed.

"Alright, I'll finish as fast as I can!" she said and went back to the floor by the mast.

Zoro quickly turned and went down to his hammock to get his supplies then returned back to his spot on the stairs.

He sat and made sure Hawke was in his line of vision before settling down and taking a closer look at the hilts of his swords. He couldn't help his eyes jumping up every now and then to check on the scout.

_She's always so happy,_ he thought as he found the source of the jiggle, _I can't help it if she makes me feel better._

Ever since Skypiea, they seemed to have reached a new step in whatever kind of relationship they had developed. Zoro knew that she had at least _some_ feelings towards him because she was a lot touchier around him then before, like grabbing his arm and pulling on his shoulder when she wanted his attention. And she also seemed more comfortable when it was just the two of them now. But he still couldn't tell if it was a friendship or something more.

He finished tightening one hilt and moved on to the next sword.

He knew that he felt lost if Hawke wasn't around. During the day when she was unconscious after Chopper did surgery on her shoulder, he hadn't known what to do with himself. He had wander aimlessly around the camp before Nami told him to go watch Hawke. He had been glad to be there when she woke up and he was very happy that he'd been the one to help her up and out to the party.

Zoro grinned to himself as he began polishing the blade.

He'd made sure that the cook hadn't laid a single finger on her while she was recovering. It had admittedly been more difficult when she was well enough to dance. He had been quite distracted by her movements and had almost let his guard down on the stupid chef. She was an amazing dancer…

Zoro stared over the edge of his blade as Hawke finished what she was doing and stood up, picking up the bucket and sponge. She'd been keeping her leather jacket off lately, unless the weather got cold, and she was wearing a white tanktop that exposed her shoulders. On her back, the top of her wings tattoo could be seen, but as she turned, Zoro's eyes found the x-shaped scar that had been left just above her heart by Eneru.

Zoro's grip tightened on his sword. If he hadn't gotten hit by that stupid lightning, he could have protected her from that shot!

"Are you okay, Zoro-san?" he heard another woman's voice behind him.

He turned and saw Robin descending the stairs.

Grunting, he moved over so there was room for her to get by.

Hawke disappeared into the ship to put her supplies away.

"You seem to be keeping an eye on her lately," said the archeologist in a calm voice.

Zoro ignored the comment and continued to polish his sword.

"She looks to you for comfort," Robin pushed, "Even more than she does to me."

Zoro looked up. He had noticed that Hawke and Robin had become extremely close. He'd often seen them deep in conversation during meals and during their down time.

"For comfort?" he grunted.

Robin nodded.

"She feels freer since the ordeal of her past was finally put to rest," said the archeologist, "She expresses her inner feelings more liberally. You should pay more attention."

Zoro started.

"Pay more attention?" he snapped, "What are you talking about?!"

But Robin just smiled and continued on her way into the kitchen.

Zoro glowered after her.

"She always talks so weirdly," he muttered, going back to his polishing, "I can never undersand what she means."

Just then the door to the ship opened and Hawke emerged, holding her sword and a small bag. She made her way up the steps and sat down beside Zoro.

"Are you almost done?" she asked, looking at his progress, "You do such a good job. I always leave some streaks on mine."

Zoro stopped and looked over to her. The sun had almost set, but a full moon was already lighting up the sky, shining softly on her face.

"Do you want me to show you?" he asked hesitantly.

Hawke's eyes lit up and she nodded.

Zoro put his swords down and watched as she unsheathed hers and held it up so he could see. Sure enough, there were a couple streak marks left by the polish along the blade. He felt a bit more confident now, this was his element.

"You're just not rubbing it in properly," Zoro muttered, inspecting the sword, "You should use small circles instead of long strokes."

"Can you show me?" Hawke asked.

"Sure," he replied.

_Is this what Robin meant?_ he thought, _by me paying more attention?_

He watched as Hawke took a small bottle of polish out of her bag and applied it to her blade, then got out her brush.

He didn't move as she began working in the polish, moving her brush in swirling figure eights.

"Hang on," he grunted, "Don't switch directions like that."

Hawke looked up at him, startled.

Zoro took a breath, then he reached over and took up her hand in his.

"Well, here," he stuttered, "You just want to do little swirling motions like this."

He moved her hand in small circles, but his eyes were on her face. He saw a small blush rise on her cheeks, but she didn't look at him, her eyes stayed focused on the brush.

"Like this?" Hawke asked as she put the brush on the blade and began working in the polish.

Zoro kept his hand on hers and enjoyed the movement they were sharing.

His body always felt lighter when she was close to him. He thought back to when he had asked for her help rowing away from Alabasta, and to the time when they had plummeted into and out of the sky during their adventure to Skypiea. He'd felt his happiest when he'd had his arm around her or his hand on her, helping her keep steady. Just like this…

"Don't go so fast," he said calmly as she began to speed up her circles, "The polish won't have time to set in if you go too quickly."

Suddenly, Hawke stopped her movement and put down her brush, taking her hand out of Zoro's grasp.

"Can I ask you something?" she asked quietly.

Zoro felt his heart begin to beat faster, but he nodded.

Hawke took a breath and raised her eyes to meet his.

"Do you believe in spirits?" she asked hesitantly.

Zoro's eyes widened.

Yes he did believe in spirits. In fact, he knew they were real. Every once in a while, he saw Kuina's spirit in his dreams or even around the ship when he was training. He had kept this to himself though, it was his business and no one else's. But why was Hawke asking this all of a sudden. Then he recalled what she had told him before they'd left for Skypiea. _Is this about that story?_

He realized that Hawke was still waiting for an answer, so he nodded again.

A look of relief passed over her face and Zoro couldn't help but feel happy.

"Why do you ask?" he muttered, putting his swords back on his waist band.

Hawke resumed polishing her blade.

"Well I've been talking to Robin a lot lately," she mumbled, "About that story we read, do you remember me telling you?"

Zoro gave her a grin as she looked up at him.

"Of course," he said.

Hawke smiled.

"I'm impressed," she let out a small laugh.

"Hey," snapped Zoro, a little put out, "What's that supposed to mean?"

Hawke let out another laugh and raised her hands defensively.

"I just mean that it was a long time ago," she smiled teasingly at him, "There's no need to get upset."

Zoro scowled at her, but then shrugged.

"What about it?" he asked.

Hawke lowered her eyes again.

"Well… I mean, it still doesn't make any sense... and I'm not even sure what I believe… but…" Zoro felt the colour rise in his cheeks as he watched her stutter.

_She's too cute_, he thought.

"Listen," he said reaching out and putting his hand on her shoulder, "Whatever you're worried about-"

"What if I _am_ the daughter of the Sky Spirit?!" Hawke burst out.

She froze when she realized how loud her outburst had been. Zoro blinked and watched her face.

"I mean," she stammered, "Robin said that there have been records of certain people who've also been able to speak to birds, sometimes it ran in families! And what if understanding birds is the connection between the humans and the Sky Spirit? And if that's all true, how am I supposed to balance peace and chaos… what does that even mean!?"

The swordsman could see that Hawke was very confused and hurting. He blushed as her eyes searched his face.

_She looks to you for comfort… even more so than to me_. Robin's words came back to him. _She expresses her feelings more liberally, you should pay more attention._

The lost look in her eyes reminded him of how he had felt right after Kuina had died… Zoro stiffened and stared.

It was her!

A small, blue-haired figure had appeared out of thin air just behind Hawke. Zoro's eyes widened as he saw the spirit of his childhood rival lift her hand and place in on top of his, which was still on Hawke's shoulder.

"Zoro?" Hawke was looking at him warily, "Are you okay?"

He blinked and brought his eyes back to her face. The figure of Kuina disappeard, leaving him wondering if he had really seen her.

"Uh," he stuttered, "I- uh…"

He took a breath and lowered his hand, feeling slightly embarrassed.

"So what if you are?" he asked gruffly.

Hawke's hands began to shake, making her sword wobble.

Zoro didn't know what to say to make her calm down, so he just sat and watched her face.

Hawke waited for a few moments, her furrowed brow showing she was thinking quite hard. Then she began polishing furiously, quickly finishing her work.

She stayed silent as she sheathed her sword and stood.

_Is she mad at me?_ Zoro thought worriedly.

He watched as she took out her wings and attached the sword to its harness.

The feathers brushed softly against his arm as they extended.

The feeling was quite comforting to the swordsman.

"Hey," Zoro grabbed her hand, "Don't let it bother you too much. Whatever happens, happens."

Hawke looked down at him and he felt her fingers grip his hand more tightly.

"Zoro…" she whispered, "I… feel like I have no control over my life…"

The swordsman stood. He couldn't stand her looking like this, with her usual happy demeanor nowhere to be seen. He felt his arm automatically reach around her, pulling her against his chest.

"Whatever your life has in store for you, it doesn't matter," he grunted, standing quite stiffly, "Just roll with the punches…and stay with us…the crew will be here whenever you fall, we'll always help you get back up."

Hawke rested her head against his chest.

Zoro felt blood rushing in his ears.

"I don't like seeing you like this," he muttered gruffly, "So whenever you're sad, come see me okay?"

He felt Hawke's warm breath through his shirt.

"Okay," she mumbled, pressing herself closer into him, "I will."

_Shut up, stupid heart!_ he growled inwardly, trying to slow the frantic beats, hoping Hawke wouldn't notice.

Suddenly, she stiffened and pushed herself back.

Zoro looked down and saw her staring up over his shoulder to the crow's nest. He turned and followed her gaze.

His breath caught in his throat as he saw the same small figure sitting up on the main sail.

Then he jerked his eyes back down to Hawke. She was still squinting up at the mast.

_Can she see her?!_ Zoro thought in confusion.

Hawke saw him watching her out of the corner of her eye and lowered her gaze.

"Sorry," she said, "I thought I saw someone up there…waving…"

Zoro looked back up at Kuina. She was still sitting on the sail, her hand raised and waving down at him. He could just make out her smile from where he stood.

He grunted and looked back down at Hawke. She was looking at the deck, no longer paying attention to the sail.

_I guess she only saw Kuina for a moment_, he thought, _still, the fact that she even caught a glimpse…_

"What if it was a spirit?" Hawke whispered quietly, looking up.

"It probably was," Zoro said.

Hawke's eyes widened and Zoro swore he almost got pulled into those emerald green depths.

He felt uncomfortable all of a sudden. He wasn't used to speaking so openly about this personal stuff, mostly because he knew that he was the only one who could see Kuina… or so he had thought.

He brought his attention back to the girl under his arm.

Hawke seemed to be deliberating with herself, and she stood silent for a while.

Zoro realized that she was trying to find it in herself to believe the legends she'd been hearing.

"Hey," he grunted, stepping back and letting his arms fall away from her, "You don't have to try and make sense of it all at once. You'll understand when you're meant to."

Hawke raised her eyes to meet his and he saw some relief and calm in her smile.

Just then Luffy's muffled, excited voice could be heard from inside the ship.

"I think supper's ready," Hawke smiled, "Ready to go in?"

Zoro nodded, casting one last glance up at the sail. There was nothing there.

"Are you feeling better?" he asked as they crossed the deck.

He reached out his hand to open the door, but Hawke tugged on his shirt, pulling him back. As he turned back to face her, he was surprised to see how close she was.

He felt her hand on his arm and stayed still as she stood up on her tiptoes.

Zoro held his breath as Hawke's lips softly pressed against his cheek. His heart immediately began hammering against his ribcage and he felt warm all over. He tried to take a step back, but he couldn't move his legs.

Hawke stepped back, her cheeks tinted with a soft pink.

"Yes, I feel much better," she said, smiling up at him, "Thanks Zoro, I think I can handle it if I have you, Luffy and everyone with me."

She walked past him and opened the door, entering the noisy, crowded kitchen.

The door closed behind her and Zoro stood in the sudden silence.

He stared out at the moon as it rose above the sea. He wasn't quite sure what he was feeling at the moment; his thoughts had scattered to the wind. He raised his hand and pressed it against his cheek, feeling the spot where her lips had touched him.

_I need her,_ he thought in realization.

A smirk suddenly returned to his face and he spun around and entered the kitchen.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Robin watched in silence as Hawke's shoulders shook violently with her silent sobs.

The scout was sitting on the roof of an inn, with a view to where the Merry was anchored.

The archeologist's prescence was unknown, and it was going to remain that way. Robin had to get back up to Dock 1 and meet up with the CP-9 agents. But she'd wanted one last look at the crew she'd been sailing with.

It was the night that Usopp left the crew. Robin hadn't been there for the actual fight, but she'd seen the crew leaving the ship with their bags from the city walls as Usopp stayed behind. And she could decipher all that had happened just by listening to Hawke's pitiful cries.

"Usopp, you idiot!" the scout whispered, "Why'd you have to go and do that just because they can't fix Merry! Couldn't you tell that Luffy was hurting too?!"

Her sobs were barely concealed behind her hands.

Robin resisted the urge to go comfort the poor girl.

_So the ship is doomed_, she thought, glancing out towards the Merry_, I guess this was fate. Now they'll have enough time to get a new ship. The marines won't bother them._

She had agreed to CP-9's terms and turned herself in in order to keep the marines from capturing the Strawhats at Water 7.

It was the first time she'd ever sacrificed herself for others… it felt strange. These people, and that foolish captain, had ended up being dear to her. She had willingly traded her freedom for theirs.

Robin looked down at Hawke, who still had her face buried in her arms.

_As long as you remain free, the truth will be known_, she thought, _I can't let the marines get you!_

She knew that her dream had too many enemies, she'd known that all along. And she now accepted that she would never know what happened in the Void Century as long as the government kept chasing her. But Hawke was the signal, the prophecied one who would reveal the events that the World Government was hiding!

She had been Robin's last hope to achieve her dream, and that had led to her forming a strong bond with the scout. Robin had enjoyed watching the blossoming romance between Hawke and Zoro, she'd even done a bit to help it along. And she had very much enjoyed all the time she'd spent with Hawke. The scout had shown an interest in Robin's knowledge and skills and they often talked long into the night. In fact, after they'd descended out of the Sky Islands, the only nights the Hawke didn't spend with her, she'd spent on look out or with Chopper, learning the art of healing. Robin had loved and cherished those times…

_But I won't be able to watch over you anymore,_ Robin looked down at Hawke one more time before turning away.

"Robin!"

The archeologist froze.

Had she been seen?!

She turned back and waited.

"Where are you, Robin?!" Hawke's voice quavered, "Why haven't you come back yet?! We need you to be here! The crew's falling apart!"

Robin breathed a sigh of relief, she hadn't been seen after all.

This was turning out to be more painful than she had anticipated. She hadn't realized exactly how attached she had become to Hawke. The younger woman had kept her spirits up with her constant joyful personality and her genuine interest in the archeologist.

_She's going to be safe because of your sacrifice_, Robin thought to herself, _her dream is more important than yours._

"Robin…" a faint whimper floated up to her ears.

Just then a window below the scout opened and a greenhaired head looked out. Robin watched as the swordsman climbed silently onto the roof behind Hawke.

"I thought I told you to come see me when you're sad," she heard Zoro grunt as he put his arm around the scout.

Robin felt a pang in her heart as she turned her back on the pair and made her way across the rooftops.

_I'm sorry Hawke-san,_ she thought sadly.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Franky couldn't believe how crazy these people were!

They had rode through Agua Laguna and had fought their way right up to the ramparts of the Courthouse. And from what he could tell, their only goal was to rescue the woman that stood beside him at the rail. Nico Robin, the Devil Child.

The woman who had just shouted to their faces that she didn't want their friendship and that she wanted to die!

"You can say what you want, Robin," Strawhat shouted across the void, "If you want to die, well that's that, but you have to do it as part of our crew!"

Franky saw the little brown haired girl jump up onto the parapet beside Strawhat. He remembered her from Water 7, she'd been with Strawhat when Franky had fought him for destroying the Franky House.

"Yeah, come back, Robin!" she shouted, waving her hand in the air, "Please come sail with us!"

He looked over at the woman standing beside him and saw tears in her eyes.

_And those aren't from sadness, I can tell,_ he thought, _those guys are so Super!_

He watched as the rest of the crew mounted the parapets.

"From now on, leave everything to us!" Strawhat shouted.

_What is her deal?_ the cyborg thought as Robin remained silent, _she must be hiding one hell of a secret._

He didn't expect her secret to be revealed so quickly though. When the threat of a Buster Call was given, her story came to the surface.

She was one of the only people in the world who could read poneglyphs, and for that fact, the World Government would hunt her down and destroy all that she was associated with. And she didn't want the Strawhat's to share her fate or be dragged down with her.

Franky's curiosity was sparked when the brown haired girl took a step towards the edge of the parapet.

"Robin!" she cried, tears streaming down her face, "We'd never consider you a burden! How could you think we'd ever betray you?! I want you to come back!"

Her legs tensed.

"Woah, is she gunna jump?!" the cyborg muttered, "That's a little dramatic, don't ya think?"

But Nico Robin gasped at his words and leaned frantically out over the wall.

"No!" she screamed, making the girl across from them freeze.

"What's going on?" Spanda drawled as he peered over Rob Lucci's shoulder.

But everyone ignored him.

"Stay where you are!" Robin screamed again, "Don't you dare do anything!"

The brown haired girl stared at her with wide eyes.

"This would all be for nothing!" Robin shouted, her voice full of emotion.

The girl stayed where she was for a few long seconds, then her expression changed from one of confusion to one of stoic determination and she slowly backed off.

Franky saw Robin relax slightly.

"My dream has too many enemies," she shouted across to the pirates, "But yours can still come true."

There was a tense silence.

"I know exactly who Robin's enemies are," Strawhat muttered.

Franky saw him say something to Sniperking. Then he watched in awe as Sniperking shot down the government flag.

"No way!" he gasped, "Are you guys out of your minds?!"

"Robin!" screamed Strawhat, "There's still something I wanna hear you say! Tell me you wanna live!"

The woman next to Franky stood shivering, tears falling down her face.

_Oh man_, he thought,_ this is too much for a guy to take!_

"I want to live!" Robin screamed across to the pirates, her voice full of raw emotion, "Take me away from here! Take me to sea with you!"

Franky felt emotion rising up in his chest. He just couldn't hold back his manly feelings any longer.

He sobbed hysterically as the pirates across from them readied themselves for battle.

"You guys are so awesome!" he blubbered, "I love you!"

All the crazy stuff and fights that followed were a blur to the cyborg, he only knew that he had to try his best to help these pirates and return home to his "family".

_Those idiots shouldn't've come here_, he thought, keeping back another flood of manly tears as he climbed up the outside of the Tower, following the huge monster reindeer, _they're just so Super!_

When he reached the top and climbed over, he saw that the orange haired girl on their crew had beat Kalifa. Together they formed a plan to get the reindeer back under control. The girl gave him the two keys she had and they ran after the monster.

Franky finally caught up to it when it smashed through a wall and into a room where more Strawats and CP-9 agents were fighting. He saw the green-haired guy and the brown-haired girl, as well as that Usopp guy. But he paid them little attention as he shot the monster out into the water to nullify his devil fruit powers and then jumped after him.

As Franky dove into the water and grabbed the, now smaller, reindeer, he felt another hand grab his foot and pull him up onto shore.

"You be careful with Chopper!" he heard a woman's voice say.

Blinking, Franky wrung out his hair and got it back up to its usual superness before taking notice of the other person.

_Oh it's her,_ he thought as the brown-haired girl helped the reindeer spit out all the water he'd swallowed.

"Hey," he said, "Thanks for the help, but I had it covered."

The girl glanced up at him and picked up the reindeer.

"I just wanted to make sure Chopper was okay," she said.

"Well he looks fine enough," grunted the cyborg, "At least he's not a rampaging monster now."

He turned and went back into the tower, the girl followed him.

"That girl named Nami told me to head for the Gates of Justice with these three keys," Franky called over his shoulder, "So I'll be heading there."

They met up with Kokoro and Chimney.

The girl handed Chopper to them and turned to Franky.

He was surprised at the ferocity in her eyes.

"I'm coming with you!" she said, "Let's get to Robin!"

The cyborg shrugged.

"If you can keep up," he said and began running down the underwater passage that led to the gates.

He heard a swishing noise behind him and looked over his shoulder.

"What?!" he shouted as he saw that the girl had sprouted black wings and was flying after him, "That is Super cool! Are you a modified human too? Like me?"

He saw the girls cheeks flush and she frowned.

"In a way, I guess," she muttered, "But I'm not a robot. And don't tell anyone I can do this, okay?"

"Super! No problem!" he shouted, "What's your name?"

The girl gave him a side-long smile.

"Hawke," she said, "Thank you for helping us, Franky."

"Aww, it's no problem," he drawled, "I'm just super like that."

They ran and flew on as fast as they could down the tunnel and finally came out into a tower of some sort. Franky saw that Hawke didn't have her wings anymore and she ran beside him as they made it through an arch. There, they ran into Strawhat and Rob Lucci who were in the midst of a battle. Strawhat told them where Robin was and they continued their race.

Franky looked over at Hawke and could tell she was at the end of her strength. She was panting heavily and had stumbled more than once already; her stamina wouldn't hold out for much longer.

"Hey!" he called over to her as they raced up the stairs, "Why don't you use those wings of yours again? Why'd you stop?"

The girl stared at him.

"I just don't want the marines to know," she panted.

"Well there aren't any here," he shouted, "You look like you're done!"

"Don't worry about me!" he heard her called up to him, "I can still go for a while yet!"

Just then, they reached the top of the stairs. As light flooded his vision, Franky took the first step out of the tunnel. Then the world exploded. He was shot out over the side of the bridge and into the water.

_This can't stop the Great Franky!_ He thought as he swam up and shot out of the water.

Landing, he saw that Hawke hadn't fallen off the bridge, though it looked like she had taken a hard hit from the explosion.

"You okay?" he called over to her.

He saw her give him a smirk and took off running down the bridge.

"I'm fine!" she shouted as she tore past him.

Franky looked towards the end of the bridge and saw that the marines were running around and falling all over the place. They were being hit by invisible missiles.

_Well whatever,_ he thought as he sprint after the girl, _as long as they're going down._

The rest of the Strawhats showed up soon and they managed to get the seaprism handcuffs off of Robin. Then everyone flung themselves headfirst into the fight, they were just waiting for their captain.

_These guys were the luckiest of the lucky_! Franky couldn't even believe how Strawhat had gotten back up and defeated Lucci and that that cook of theirs had managed to close the Gates of Justice _and _how their little ship had sailed itself all the way out here to save them.

_They must have really loved that ship_, the shipwright thought somberly.

And it was easy to see the hearts of the pirates breaking as their ship finally gave under the pressure. As Strawhat lit the fuse and the Viking funeral began, the tears were barley being held back by every one watching, including Franky.

He could see Nami and Hawke fall to their knees and begin to bawl, holding onto each other for support.

_They really considered that ship to be part of their crew and their friend_, he thought as they watched the flames roar around the goat masthead and the Klabautermann's voice whispered through the air, _These guys know how to respect a ship…_

He couldn't stop the tears flowing down his face and he didn't want to.

_I can't believe those idiots in the family stole these guys' money,_ he thought, _They deserve it to be returned to them._

He began right then to make the plans for his dream ship, the one he would give to these pirates.


	34. Chapter 34: Black Wings Fly Once More

**Chapter 34**

**Black Wings Fly Once More**

Hawke smiled to herself as she walked through the rubble filled streets of Water 7. She was by herself, enjoying the sun and the warmth of the day. The crew had returned to the shipbuilding city to rest, recover, and to somehow find a new ship.

Hawke felt a pang as she thought of the Going Merry; but they had said their goodbyes and the ship had been happy. And as for a new ship, all their money from Skypiea was gone. A fact that Nami was a continual reminder of. In fact, Hawke hadn't been able to handle the depressed navigator's gloomy aura any more and had gone for her walk.

Hawke pushed those unhappy thoughts out of her mind and looked at the city around her.

The citizens had returned after Agua Lagoona and were beginning on the extensive repairs the city desperately needed. The shipbuilders and the citizens were working together to tackle the immense task and the sounds of hammers could be heard on every block.

Hawke made her way down to the plaza that overlooked Scrap Island. She gazed out over the water and was surprised to see Zoro sitting in amongst the chunks of debris and wooden planks. She caught sight of the rusted blade that the swordsman was holding up.

_Right_, she thought_, the sword he got in Loguetown, that marine jerk rusted it away._

"I hope he's doing okay," she muttered, "Those swords are really important to him. And now he needs another one."

Hawke fought the urge to run out to Scrap Island. Zoro had left early that morning, before anyone else had woken up. Hawke figured since he didn't wake her, he wanted some time to himself. She didn't want to interrupt his mourning, so she kept herself away for now.

But she made a mental note to comfort the swordsman later.

She found herself wandering the streets, not knowing what to do with herself. The Galley-La Company had let them stay up in Dock 1 where they could be out of the public eye and rest. After her wounds had healed, Hawke had hated being couped up, so she had taken to wandering around the city and offering help where she could.

But today, she wasn't in a very helpful mood and she stuck to the backstreets and the less destroyed parts of town, since they had the least people.

Her mind wandered all over the place. She thought about Robin and hoped that she was having fun with Chopper; the two had gone out to treat the Franky Family. A smile came onto her face as she recalled the archeologist's face and voice when she had thanked them for coming after her. Hawke was so happy that everything had worked out.

Her thoughts then drifted to the Merry again and she saw the ship sinking before her eyes.

Hawke clenched them shut and immediatly pulled the image of Luffy, still sleeping up in Dock 1, to the forefront of her mind.

_I hope he wakes up soon,_ she thought, _at least his body seems to be healing at a fast rate. He really pushed himself this time though…_

She and Chopper had been keeping a watchful eye of their captain, making sure his body was recovering properly. The doctor was excited to have Hawke's help and said he was impressed with how much she had improve in her healing skills.

Hawke had shrugged off the compliments. They needed their captain to be awake to participate in trying to figure out what they were going to do before the marines came after them. Which, she had a feeling, would be soon.

Hawke traced her finger along a crack in the wall of the building next to her. The rock felt rough against her finger.

She hoped that Usopp would find the courage she knew he had and would come and apologize and rejoin the crew. She knew that it was hard on everyone, including the sniper, but he needed to man up... she just wished he would do it now.

Hawke felt her legs stop moving and raised her head to see where she'd ended up. She found herself at the crossroads of four streets. There was no movement on any of them.

She looked around and saw an awning stretched out over a bench. Glancing up at the sun, she suddenly became aware of the sweat dripping down her neck.

"That looks like a nice spot for a rest," she muttered, tying her hair back, "I'm not in a hurry."

She went over and seated herself on the bench, stretching her legs out in the shade. Leaning back, she rested her head on the wall of the building behind her.

"How are we going to move on?" she sighed, thinking about the loss of the Merry and the still missing Usopp.

There was a sudden rustle from beside her.

"People always move on," she heard a croak.

Hawke gasped as she looked down and saw a basket sitting on the far edge of the bench.

There was a large black, feathered mass sitting in a bundled up white blanket. As the mass raised its head, Hawke recognized it as a raven.

"Oh, hello," she smiled, "I didn't realize that this bench was already taken."

The raven clacked its beak.

"There is plenty of room," it croaked before lowering its head to rest on the edge of the basket.

"Thank you very much, then," Hawke smiled.

She watched the bird as it paused, then raised its head again and turned to face her full on.

She blinked as she saw that the birds left eye was milky white.

"Salem?" the raven asked cautiously.

"Um, no," she replied calmly, "My name is Hawke."

The bird clacked its beak again and cocked its head to one side.

"Is your name Salem?" Hawke asked curiously.

The raven fluffled up its chest.

"I am Caracass," it croaked, "I can see you now…Princess."

Hawke blinked.

"Umm…" she stuttered.

"You are like him," Caracass clicked, "And he is like you."

Hawke eyed the raven in confusion.

"What are you talking about?" she asked.

Just then, there was the tramp of boots and the doors of the shop behind the bench were flung open.

"Here you are, Caracass!" a short, fat, old man appeared, "Sorry it took so long, but you really beat it up this time. Have you been enjoying the view?"

He stopped as he noticed the girl sitting on the bench.

Hawke gave him a nervous little wave.

The man was wearing a dirty, white shirt under a dark work jacket. His weathered blue pants were held up with red suspenders, which looked strained almost to the breaking point.

"Oh my!" the man gave her a smile, "What a pretty visitor you have, you old bird. Since you haven't raised a fuss, I guess she's alright."

Hawke smiled and watched as the man picked up the raven.

She gasped when she saw that, as well as being blind in one eye, the bird was also missing his left wing!

"Ah yes, missy," the man gave a chuckle as he stood the raven up on the bench, "Poor Caracass here had a nasty accident a long time ago. He lost his wing and eye, as well as his friend."

Hawke watched the man as he produced an artificial, mechanical wing from his pocket. There were two leather straps that formed a rudimentary harness that fit nicely around the bird's body. Once the mechanical wing was secured, Caracass took a few practise flaps and then took off, flying up to the top of the awning, and peered down at them through his good eye.

"That's really good worksmanship!" Hawke turned back to the old man, who had taken a seat beside her, "But shouldn't the metal be too heavy for him to fly?"

The old man gave a chuckle.

"I'd say it's my masterpiece," he said, "It's made of steel that has been thinned out and reinforced three times over! Making it as strong as a sword but light as a feather. The only drawback is that it can't be moved as delicately as a real wing, so he can't fly too high or for too long or do any fancy acrobatics. But it's enough that he can get around by himself."

Hawke smiled. Then her thoughts drifted back to the words the man had said as he'd put the wing on Caracass.

"You said he'd lost a friend?" she asked hesitantly.

"Oh I did, did I?" the man laughed, "Well how's about we get introduced first, before I go telling you all about our troubles?"

Hawke blinked and lowered her eyes.

"Oh, yes, I'm sorry," she blushed, "I didn't mean to be rude."

The old man laughed again.

"Not to worry, missy," he said, "My name is Hayato, I'm a mechanic. This here is my shop."

He gestured to the building behind them.

"And my name is Hawke," she replied, "I'm the scout for the Strawhat Pirates."

Hayato's eyes widened as he registered what she'd said.

"What?!" he exclaimed, "A little thing like you, a pirate?!"

Hawke nodded, giving him a smile.

"Don't worry," she laughed, "Our crew isn't the pillaging kind."

"Well, I'll be," Hayato flashed her a wide smiled, "You're the ones who helped save Iceberg from those assassins. You have mine and the city's thanks for that."

Hawke smiled and looked up to Caracass, who was now hopping along the edge of the awning.

"You have strong blood," the raven croaked.

"Strong blood?" Hawke stared up in confusion.

"His was weak from hundreds of generations," Caracass continued, "But your blood is strong. The Spirits blood."

"The Spirit…" Hawke stared up at the bird.

"Huh?" Hayato grunted from beside her.

"Oh, sorry," Hawke lowered her gaze again.

The old man stared at her for a few moments.

"So what are you doing moping around this part of Water 7," he muttered, scratching his stubbly chin, "Shouldn't you be celebrating or something?"

Hawke smiled.

"I'm not much in the mood for partying at the moment," she said, "We need to wait for our captain to get better before we leave. We don't want the marines to catch up to us…"

She trailed off and her face fell.

"Well, first we need a new ship," she finished distractedly.

Hayato lowered his head.

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that," he said comfortingly, "But that often happens in a place like this. Ships are destroyed and built every day in this city."

Hawke fidgeted with her jacket cuff.

"But she was our friend…" she felt tears in the corner of her eyes.

She quickly wiped them away, hoping the old man hadn't caught them.

She could sense his gaze on her and looked at the ground.

"I'm sorry," she mumbled, "I know that sounded stupid… saying that about a ship…"

"Oh, it doesn't sound stupid at all!" Hayato said, "In fact, that's the second time in my life that I've heard those words about a boat."

Hawke blinked and looked up.

"Really?" she asked.

Hayato nodded.

"Actually," he pointed up at the raven above them, "It was Caracass's old friend, Salem, who once said the same thing about his ship."

"Oh so that's who Salem is," Hawke smiled, also looking up at the raven, "Caracass said his name when I sat down."

"Caracass said…" the old man stared back at her.

Hawke flushed and gave him a small smile.

_Oops_, she thought, _I didn't mean to say that much… but the damage is done._

"I know this might sound silly, but I can understand him," she mumbled.

Hayato stared at her in silence for a few moments, then he got up and went back into his shop.

Hawke watched the door nervously.

"He's getting it," Caracass croaked as he swooped down from the awning.

"Getting what?" Hawke asked as she stroked the birds head.

"The picture," Caracass clacked his beak.

Hawke smiled down at him, noting many grey feathers among the black ones.

"You're pretty old, aren't you?" she ran her finger down the top of his beak.

Caracass snapped playfully at her fingers as she lifted them.

"What were you saying about me having strong blood?" she asked.

The bird hopped onto her knee and sat down.

"Salem was a many great's grandson of the Spirit," he croaked, taking on a wise sounding voice, "He was the last of his family and also the last of the old generation of the Spirit's children. You are the first child of the new generation."

Hawke's eyes widened.

"The first child…?"

Caracass nodded.

"His blood runs strongly through your veins," he croaked, "That is why you can speak to all the races of the sky. Salem, like his father and grandmother, could only speak to one race."

Hawke blinked.

"So Salem could only talk to ravens then?" she asked.

Caracass nodded again.

"I believe his father could speak to the gulls and his grandmother understood sparrows," he said, "But now they are all gone, and Salem is gone… but now you're here."

He looked up at her through his good eye.

Hawke felt her face flush.

Just then, Hayato burst out of his shop again and sat down heavily on the bench, causing Caracass to wobble off Hawke's knee. She had to lunge out to catch the bird before he fell to the ground.

"Oh, sorry about that, old bird," grunted Hayato, "But I finally found it and I got excited."

He waved a picture frame in front of Hawke's face.

"I'm sure you'll agree with me, missy, you being a pirate and all," he smiled, "When I say these are the greatest men in the world!"

Hawke took the frame from his wobbling hands and looked down at the picture under the glass.

She gasped and her eyes widened.

"This is…!" she gaped at the picture, "Gold Roger?!"

The photograph was taken inside a tavern, and the center of it was filled with a group of men, smiling and raising their mugs towards the camera. In the center of the group was a man with dark hair and a large, red captain's coat draped over his shoulders with a matching hat on his head. But the telltale dramatic black mustache was instantly recognizable.

Hawke's eyes ran eagerly over the rest of the faces. She recognized the Dark King, Silvers Rayleigh, from his wanted poster and then a man with a flower on his head. Hawke blinked. It was Crocus, from the Twin Peaks, who they'd met at the entrance to the Grand Line!

"He said he'd been the doctor on a pirate ship!" she exclaimed, "But I didn't know it was Gold Roger's!"

She looked up at Hayato, her eyes shining.

"Did you meet the Pirate King?!" she asked eagerly.

The old man leaned back and crossed his arms behind his head.

"It was the best night of my life!" he exclaimed proudly.

Hawke lowered the picture and settled in. She could sense a tale was getting ready to be told.

"In my younger days," Hayato began, "I was the busboy at a bar down in the tourist district. I always loved listening to the stories told by the pirates and sailors that filled the tables every night. And one evening, who should come in but the Pirate King himself! Although at the time he wasn't yet known by that title. I still remember every word of the tales they told that night. They'd had adventures you would never even dream of! Even back then, before he had conquered the Grand Line, I could tell he was meant for great things. He had this aura about him…"

The old man smiled fondly at his memory, then a concerned look passed over his face.

"But they did have a somber air about them that night," he sighed, "After all, they'd come to this island for the same reason most pirates come here. They needed a new ship. They'd barely managed to make it here with the little one they had. They were sad to let their first ship go. But Salem was more upset than the rest."

He leaned over and pointed to anther man that Hawke hadn't recognized.

He could be seen just above Roger's shoulder, smiling out at the camera. He had dark hair that was pushed back out of his face and had a defiant, competitive glint in his eye. His face was clean shaven and he had a very prominent chin, which stuck out past his nose. His shoulders were covered in a dark blue cloak, but the rest of his body was blocked off by the other crew members.

Hawke's eyes widened as she saw the silouhette of a dark bird perched on the man's shoulder.

"Is that Caracass?!" she exclaimed, looking up.

"You bet!" laughed Hayato, "He's a real old bird, almost as old as me!"

_No wonder he has grey feathers,_ Hawke thought as she looked down at the raven sitting in her lap.

"Well anyways," the old man cleared his throat, "Salem was particularily unwilling to part with their little ship. He and Roger got into a fight and it came to blows..."

Hawke froze.

This was beginning to sound familiar…

"… It ended with Salem leaving the crew. He stormed out, taking Caracass with him, saying that he would sail on and show Roger that their ship still had life in her," Hayato sighed, "The next day, Roger and the rest of them went down to see old Tom, the shipwright who trained Iceberg, to see about him building them a new ship. And Salem went up to Dock 1 to argue with the shipwrights and try and get them to fix the old one. Of course, they refused him again. That's when Caracass had his accident. A keel-log fell as they were moving it and pinned the poor bugger."

Hawke stroked the bird's feathers gently.

"That's awful, Caracass!" she exclaimed.

The raven just clacked his beak.

"Yes, it was quite the injury," Hayato muttered gruffly, "Salem found a veterinarian but his friend's wing and eye couldn't be saved. That's when I met them both face to face. Salem came back down to the bar with a bandaged up Caracass and told me his troubles. That day I was filling in for the bartender and we ended up talking long into the night, about nothing in particular. He kept mumbling about his destiny and this and that. I remember he kept repeating the words: "black wings, not black wing". And then, all of a sudden, he asked me to take care of Caracass for him, since the sea is no place for a bird who can't fly. I eventually accepted. And then Salem took off."

Hawke blinked.

"What?" she stammered, "He didn't rejoin with Roger? Where'd he go?"

Hayato scratched his chin.

"Nah," he said gruffly, "Salem took their old ship and took on a new name as a one man pirate crew. He sailed on as the Black Wing Pirate, in memory of his comrade left behind."

Hawke shifted nervously.

His story had sounded too much like their own situation with Usopp for her liking. And the ending wasn't very reassuring.

She clenched her hands nervously.

_What if Usopp doesn't come back!?_ she thought in a panic.

"He had finally accepted that he was not the one the prophecy spoke of," Caracass suddenly croaked, causing Hawke to jump, "But he still wanted to make it as far as he could go, in order to help the ones who would follow him."

"The prophecy?" Hawke stuttered, "The one's who'd follow him?"

Then something clicked.

"He called himself the Black Wing Pirate?" she asked Hayato.

The old man nodded.

"When black wings fly once more..." Hawke muttered, "Black _wings_… not black _wing_…"

"You are the one that follows him!" Caracass cawed loudly, flapping his wings, "You who have wings as black as mine!"

"How do you know that?!" Hawke stammered.

The metal wing thumped against her leg and she grunted in pain.

"Hey, old bird!" Hayato exclaimed angrily, "Watch what you're doin'!"

But Caracass kept flapping his wings.

"Show her the last one!" he croaked, "The last one! Show it to her!"

Hawke leaned back, away from the flailing feathers.

"Caracass says he wants you to show me the last one," she said, looking helplessly over at the old man, not knowing what was happening.

Hayato froze.

"The last one…?" he mumbled, looking at the excited raven.

Then he stood up.

Caracass finally began to settle down.

"You really can understand 'im, can't you?" the old man looked wonderingly at Hawke.

She felt her face flush and she nodded.

Hayato smiled.

"Then maybe you are the one I've been waiting for," he grinned, "I'll be right back."

And with that he disappeared into his shop again.

Hawke blinked.

"Wait, what?!" she exclaimed, "Who you've been waiting for? What do you mean?!"

But there was silence inside the shop.

She sat back with a frustrated huff and crossed her arms.

"He meant what he said," Caracass croaked.

He had shuffled off her lap and onto the bench.

"Well that doesn't make anything clearer," she muttered, "And how do you know about my wings?"

The bird bobbed his head up and down.

"As I told you before," he said, "I can see you."

Hawke rolled her eyes.

"You enjoy being cryptic don't you?" she muttered.

Caracass fluffed out his chest feathers.

"Humans can never see the greater things," he clacked his beak.

Hawke blinked.

"Well I guess that's as good an answer as I'm going to get, isn't it?" she asked, sighing, "So what is Hayato going to get?"

"After Salem left, he wrote back every so often. Sending letters on the legs of brothers of mine that he found on his journeys," the raven said.

Hawke raised an eyebrow.

"Letters?" she asked.

Then she paused.

"The last one…," she muttered, "Did you mean the last letter he sent you?"

Caracass nodded.

"The letters stopped coming many years ago," he clacked his beak, "But the last one he sent carried a special message."

Hawke looked expectantly at the bird, but he remained silent after that.

She frowned and looked at the ground.

_What kind of message was in the last letter?_ She wondered, _and what did Hayato mean when he said I'm the one he's been waiting for?_

She waited there in silence for a few moments. Then her thoughts drifted back to the mysterious Salem.

Caracass had said that he was the last of the Spirit's line of the old generation. If she took the legend seriously, then that would mean that a thousand years ago, the Sky Spirit became human and had human children. They and their descendants had been able to understand and speak to birds. But from what the raven had told her, through the generations, that ability had gotten weaker until it only applied to one species. And Salem was the last of that line.

Hawke narrowed her eyes in concentration. And from Hayato's story, it sounded like Salem knew about the Dark Angel Prophecy and thought it had applied to him. But when Caracass lost his wing, he seemed to take it as an omen that he was not the Dark Angel.

_But why did he set out by himself?_ She thought, _what was he searching for? How did he know people would follow him? And what did Caracass mean when he said I'm the one who is following him?_

These questions whirled around Hawke's mind as she tried to piece together all the information she'd just received.

Her thoughts were interrupted when the doors to the shop opened again, more calmly this time, and Hayato returned.

"Sorry for the wait," he apologized, "But it took some time to find."

He held out an old piece of parchment.

Hawke slowly reached out and took it.

"So this is the letter?" she asked as she looked at the worn and darkened edges, "Just how old is it?"

Hayato sat down heavily and crossed his arms.

"If I can recall correctly," his forehead screwed up in concentration, "It would have been about twenty years ago, right Caracass?"

The raven clacked his beak in agreement.

"Twenty years…" Hawke muttered as she began to read the scrawling, jumbled script, "That's a long time."

_It looks like it was written in a hurry,_ she thought.

_Hello, my dear friends,_

_I know it's been a while since my last letter and I apologize for the wait. But the circumstances haven't been allowing for much time to put pen to paper. I hope that the old man is treating you well, Caracass. If I find out he's forgotten to feed you even once, he'll be the one missing an arm! I hope you're doing fine as well, Hayato._

_I've been travelling constantly for the past months, trying to uncover the answers I'm searching for, and have finally reached the last point of the first half of the Grand Line! I'm currently doing some investigations at the Sabaody Archipelago, but I've run into some Unsavoury characters and have gone into hiding. Word of my Research must have reached the wrong ears and I will soon have to leave this place. My next destination is Fishman Island. I've been told there is someone there who can help me in my quest, they say she can see into the future! Anyways, I think I am finally getting close to the Answers we've been looking for. I just Need a little more time, then I'll come back to see you again, Caracass!_

_Before I finish this letter, I have one more favour to ask of you, old Hayato. I need you to keep this letter and stay on the look out for the person who will follow me! I can't tell you who they are or what they will look like, or even when they will appear. But I know they will follow in my footsteps. Afterall, if you sail on the sea, you're going to end up at Water 7 sooner or later. Please give them this letter. They will Understand my message and, by extension, my research._

_I hope we can be reunited Soon, my friends,_

_Salem, the Black Wing Pirate_

There was a small crest stamped at the end of the signature. A skull with crossed swords under it and one black wing extending from the right side of the skull.

Hawke finished reading and looked up.

"What doe he mean by "the one who will follow him"?" she asked hesitantly, "You think that's me, don't you?"

Hayato, who had been watching her, lowered his eyes and nodded.

"It's just a gut feeling I have," he muttered, "But you can speak to Caracass, just like Salem could. You remind me of him, in a way."

Hawke frowned and looked back to the letter.

"They will understand my message…and, by extension, my research…" she whispered as she reread the last paragraph.

"I don't know what he means by that," Hayato said distractedly, "And we've received no more letters after that. I can only assume that whoever was after him finally caught up to him."

Hawke squinted at the ground, trying to make sense of this. But it just sounded like a normal letter sent to update Caracass of Salem's whereabouts and goings on. Although it did sound like he was researching something dangerous.

Hawke gave up and held the letter out to Hayato.

But the old man raised his hands.

"My instructions were to give this to the person who's following Salem," he said, "You take it."

Hawke felt her face get hot.

"Umm, okay," she stammered and put it carefully into her jacket.

Caracass clacked his beak, drawing her attention.

"Let Hayato know who you are," he croaked, "Reassure him."

Hawke bit her lip. Most of this was going over her head, she needed some time to think things over and gather her thoughts. But the old man did look a little awkward and unsure.

"How?" she looked down at the raven.

"Black wings, not black wing," Caracass cawed.

Hawke stared at him for a few moments.

_He means for me to show my wings!_ she realized.

Looking up and down the street to make sure that there was no one else in sight, Hawke took a deep breath and stood up, turning to face Hayato.

"Well, I'm not sure exactly what any of this means," she said quietly, "But I have a feeling that I might be the right person…"

She slowly extended her wings through the slits in her jacket and stretched her them out of their tattoo form.

"After all," she smiled, seeing the look of awe on the old man's face, "Didn't Salem say "Black wings, not black wing"?"

Hayato stared up at her, his mouth hanging open.

Hawke quickly retracted her wings again and took another glance around the street. It was still empty.

_Phew,_ she thought, breathing a sigh of relief.

"Well, I'll be…" Hayato gasped, "You are something special, aren't you? I'm sure you're the one Salem was waiting for."

Hawke smiled and gave a slight shake of her head.

"I don't know about that," she said, "And please don't tell anyone about me. But I will take your letter. I want to go to Fishman Island. That's the last place he said he was going…"

Caracass and the old man both nodded.

"Well maybe that person Salem was looking for is still there," Hawke mused, "If I can find them, maybe they can tell me what he was looking for. He sounds interesting. I would have really liked to meet him."

The raven cawed loudly and Hayato smiled.

"Well I wish you luck on your journey, miss," he laughed, "And I'm very glad to have met you."

Hawke smiled warmly at the man and turned to leave.

"I should be going," she said over her shoulder, "But I don't know how long we'll have to stay here, maybe we'll meet again!"

She waved and continued down the street and rounded the corner.

_What was that all about?_ she thought as she picked her way up through the city.

But despite all the confusing things she'd been told, she knew that she had just learned some very important things. About herself and about the prophecy.


	35. Chapter 35: Some Familiar Faces

**Chapter 35**

**Some Familiar Faces**

Hawke returned to Dock 1 to discover that their belongings had miraculously been rescued and returned! The inn owner had confiscated them and thrown the pirates out when Iceberg and been attacked, suspecting them of being the perpetrators. But now that everything was cleared up, they had humbly returned them, much to Nami's overwhelming joy.

Hawke smiled as she watched the navigator gently caress her orange trees and the one briefcase of money they had left.

"Well this is wonderful!" the scout laughed.

Just then, Franky burst in behind her with his usual groovy entrance.

"You guys listen up!" he said, getting serious and raising his sunglasses.

The group that was there (and conscious): Sanji, Nami, Chopper, Robin and Hawke, as well as Kokoro and Chimney, gathered around him.

"What's the big news?" asked Sanji.

Franky sat down and began telling them about the Jewel Tree, Adam. And about how he had managed to buy a piece of wood from Adam with the money he'd stolen from the Strawhats. Then about his goal of building his Ship of Dreams.

"So what I'm saying here," he finished, "Is it would be an honour… if you would take my ship and sail the world!"

The room was silent.

"What?!" cried Hawke.

"Does that mean-!" Chopper smiled happily.

"You're gunna give us the ship free of charge?!" Sanji gaped at the cyborg.

Franky smiled from ear to ear.

"Yeah!" he said, "Cuz that way I'll know my masterpiece is in good hands. That's all I could ask for. Well that, and you kinda already paid for it."

He smirked at the group and lifted his fist.

"Gold Roger is the only man in history who has sailed across the whole world! And his ship, the Oro Jackson, was made by my master, and from a Jewel Tree as well! Mark my words, I'll show you the best damn ship you've ever seen!" he shouted

The room erupted in cheers.

"Woohoo!" Hawke whooped and she gave the cyborg a big hug.

"You're the best, Franky!" squeaked Chopper, dancing around, "Thank you! We'd be happy to take your ship!"

Hawke let go of the cyborg and turned to celebrate with Luffy, but saw that he had slept through the whole thing.

"Well he'll have an amazing surprise when he wakes up!" she laughed.

The group was still celebrating when there was a sudden booming noise and the outer wall of the building shattered.

Hawke ducked as parts of wood were blasted at her head.

"What's going on!?" she exclaimed.

Everyone stood still as the dust settled.

A solitary figure stood in front of the group.

There was a collective gasp as they recognized the clothes of a Navy Vice-Admiral!

"Are you the Strawhat Pirates?" a very tall, strong looking man with a dog hat boomed, "There're some men here who want to meet Monkey D. Luffy."

Sanji stiffened.

"Marines!" he snapped.

The Vice-Admiral scoffed.

"Really… just as careless as always," he muttered.

Hawke started. His voice sounded familiar!

Just then, the marine sprang past them and pounded his fist into the still sleeping captain's head.

"Dammit!" shouted Sanji, "He's fast!"

"Wake up!" shouted the marine.

Luffy woke up in a flurry, clutching at his head, which was already swelling from the force of the blow.

"Ow!" he shouted, "It hurts! It hurts!"

"Hurts?" Sanji yelled, "What are you saying? That was a punch. You're a rubber man!"

The marine straightened and raised his hands to his hat.

"There's no defense against a fist of love!" he laughed.

Hawke felt a smile spreading across her face as she heard those words.

The group watched as the man removed the dog-like head gear.

"I've heard you've been acting pretty recklessly, Luffy," the marine said, revealing his square jaw, short, scruffy grey hair and scarred left eye.

Hawke gasped as she and her brother realized who was talking to them.

"G-! G-! G-! Grandpa!?" He stammered fearfully.

"Grampa Garp!" Hawke cried, waving her hand.

The room froze.

"Ehh!" the rest of the room shouted.

"A marine Vice-Admiral is… your grandfather?!" squealed Chopper.

"Did you say Garp?!" gasped Nami, "Isn't that the name of the marine hero?!"

The Vice-Admiral turned to look at Hawke. His eyes popped out of his head and his jaw hit the floor.

"Hawke!" he shouted at the top of his lungs, "Young lady! What are you doing here?! Don't tell me Luffy's dragged you into being a pirate too?!"

Hawke looked calmly back at her grandfather.

"Luffy didn't drag me into anything, Grampa," she said, "I want to sail with him. It's my choice!"

The marine rounded on their captain, who was still sitting on the ground, rubbing his head.

"Now Luffy!" shouted Garp, "Don't you think you owe me an apology?!"

There was a pause and many voices could be heard muttering outside.

"Vice-Admiral Garp has grand-children?"

"It's the first I've heard of it."

"Luffy, Hawke-san," Sanji called over, "Is he really your-?"

"He is!" interrupted Luffy, "Don't try to fight him. I was almost killed by my grandpa hundreds of times."

The crew gasped, then Sanji stiffened.

"Oi, old man!" he shouted, "You better not have laid a finger on Hawke-san!"

Garp laughed.

"Hey now, don't start speaking ill of me," he boomed, "I didn't need to teach Hawke how to be a lady, she already knew how. When I tossed Luffy into that bottomless ravine, and left him alone in the jungle at night, and tied him to balloons and sent him flying into the sky; that was all to make him into a strong man!"

Hawke crossed her arms.

"You were always too rough with him, Grampa," she said, "And you never let me train."

"I think I've just seen part of what gave Luffy his endless will to live…" muttered Sanji.

Garp laughed again, looking down at Luffy

"In the end I left you with a close friend to continue your training with Ace since you were becoming too much of an influence on your little sister," he sighed and let out a huff, "And while you were out of my sight, this happened… I did it all to make you into a strong marine!"

Luffy jumped up.

"I always told you that I wanted to be a pirate, didn't I?!" he shouted.

"You were corrupted by that "Red-Hair"!" shouted Garp, "And now you've corrupted my grand-daughter! She was already training under the marines but now she's here with you! It's nonsense!"

Hawke could see Luffy getting flustered.

"I- I owe my life to Shanks!" he shouted at the Vice-Admiral, "Don't insult him!"

Hawke shielded her eyes as she saw Garp lunge out and grab Luffy's shirt collar.

_Luffy should've known better_, she thought.

"Do you mean to tell your own grandpa what to do?!" shouted the marine.

"Ahh!" shouted Luffy, flailing his arms, "I'm sorry!"

"Emergency!" cried Chopper, "Luffy was caught by the marines!"

"This is bad," muttered Sanji, "If we try to fight they'll jump right on top of us!"

"Wait!" Hawke called.

She raised her hand and pointed to her brother and grandfather.

They were both sleeping where they stood. Luffy was still dangling from Garp's clenched fist.

"Asleep!?" shouted the crew.

"Just leave them," Hawke sighed, "They'll wake up and then Luffy'll get a beating. This is how it always goes."

And that's exactly what happened.

Hawke smiled as the crew sank to the floor in defeat.

"Oh, whatever," they muttered, "Just do what you want…"

Hawke never liked being around when Garp was teaching Luffy a lesson, so she went out into the hall and peeked out the door. There was a large group of marine soldiers standing at the ready.

_But if Grampa's here, I don't think they'll do anything,_ she thought, _Grampa always keeps loyal marines._

She opened the door and stepped out.

The marines immediately turned to face her.

Hawke stood there nervously, debating going back inside after all.

Just then, there was the noise of swords clashing and the sounds of a fight could be heard coming from the back of the group.

"Oh," she heard a man who was standing close to the hole in the wall behind Garp, "It's the pirate hunter, Roronoa Zoro."

"Zoro?" Hawke mumbled.

"He seems pretty tough," she heard Garp say, "Hey, you two, try and stop him!"

There were two men standing by. One with short, pink hair and one with long blond hair and dark glasses.

"Yes, sir!" they replied and sprung into action.

Hawke wasn't about to let them attack Zoro when his back was turned so she chased after them.

She took two knives out of her jacket, but before she could reach the swordsman, four men detached themselves from the group and blocked her path.

"Sheesh," Hawke panted, "Four on one is pretty unfair, don't you think?"

But she had a plan. As the men closed in around her, she planted one of her blades into the ground as hard as she could. Then, gripping the hilt, she used it as a pivot point and swung herself around it. Her legs lifted off the ground and she kicked one marine between the legs and another in the chin, making them both fall to the ground.

As the two unscathed marines backed off, she retrieved her knife from the ground and sprang at them.

She hooked her arm around the hilt of one guy's sword and got him to drop it, then she hit him in the head with the hilt of her knife. The remaining marine swung his sword at her, but she managed to block it with her other knife.

There was a pause as they stood, trying to push each other's weapon down.

Then the marine smiled.

"You weren't kidding," he panted, "When you said you were pretty strong."

Hawke blinked. The comment caught her off guard and she sprang away from the marine.

The man lowered his sword and held it to his side in a peaceful gesture.

"Don't you recognize me, Angel?" he asked, a sly smile on his face.

Hawke stiffened and looked the man up and down. There were only two people who had called her by that name…

As she was doing this, the other three men began standing up.

"Same here, Miss Hawke," said the marine she'd disarmed, rubbing his head, "It's been a while hasn't it?"

Hawke took another step back, blinking in confusion and trying to see the other men's faces.

Then her gaze fell on the man she'd kicked between the legs and her eyes widened. He was wearing a blue bandana, which his messy brown hair was sticking out of at odd angles. She remembered a man from Alabasta who'd worn the same thing.

"B-Bran?" she stuttered.

The man raised his head and gave her a pained smile.

"You have quite the kick, Angel," he tried to laugh, but ended up coughing.

"Oh, I'm so sorry," Hawke apologized and ran over to help him up, "Are you okay?"

Bran got a real laugh out this time.

"I'll survive," he grinned.

Hawke took a second look at the other three men standing around her.

"Tank?" she gasped, "Meeko? Gavin?!"

"It's good to see you, Angel!" Tank gave her a wave.

"You're looking well, Miss Hawke," smiled Meeko

"I'm surprised you remembered my name," muttered Gavin.

Hawke stumbled backwards, feeling a smile spreading across her face.

"What are all of you doing here!?" she stammered.

"Why don't you relax, Miss Hawke," Meeko gestured to her still raised knives, "We aren't here to capture the Strawhats."

Hawke blinked and lowered her weapons.

"Oh, I'm sorry," she blushed and smiled, putting them back into her jacket, "I'm just so surprised to see you all."

"Well we're surprised to hear you're the granddaughter of our Vice-Admiral!" exclaimed Bran, he seemed to have recovered enough, "And that you're Strawhat Luffy's sister!"

"You're just full of surprises," laughed Tank.

Hawke looked around at the four men. Two of whom she'd met at Gunkka Island in the East Blue and two of which had kidnapped her in Alabasta.

"How did you all end up here?!" she asked, then looked over to Tank and Bran, "And when did you two become marines?"

Tank smiled and threw his arm around Bran's shoulder.

"Well, after we lost our jobs in Alabasta," he gave her a wink, "We figured we'd enlist. We wanted to see more of the world. We're here as commissioned officers!"

"That's great!" Hawke smiled, "And did you meet Meeko and Gavin here?"

Bran nodded.

"We're all in the same squadron," he said.

Hawke turned to the other pair.

"And since when are you guys working under Grampa Garp?" she asked.

The men's faces immediately lit up and they covered their mouths, trying to hide their laughter.

"What's so funny?" Hawke looked around in confusion.

"It's nothing," sniggered Gavin, "We're just not used to hearing the Vice-Admiral called Grampa, that's all."

After saying this, the four men burst out laughing. Hawke flushed and looked over her shoulder. The other fights seemed to have stopped. Zoro and Luffy were now talking to the pink and blond haired men.

_I guess they know each other as well,_ she thought.

She brought her attention back to the four men in front of her. They had finally stopped laughing.

"Well, after Commander Royale was killed, we got reassigned to this division," Meeko said, "There's not much else to it."

Hawke smiled.

"Well I'm glad you're all moving up!" she said warmly, "It's really nice knowing you're all okay."

Tank laughed.

"You haven't changed a bit, Angel," he smiled.

Gavin shot him a confused look.

"Why do you guys call her Angel? Her name's Hawke," he snapped.

Hawke blinked and she listened nervously to Tank's reply.

"Oh, well when we met her, she wouldn't tell us her name," he said, shuffling his feet, "So we just gave her that nickname."

"And it kinda stuck," added Bran.

Gavin raised his eyebrow at Hawke.

"Why didn't you tell them your name?" he asked.

"Umm… well," she stuttered, "The circumstances were unusual and I didn't think I could trust them."

Bran gave a huff.

"Well you weren't so trustworthy yourself!" he scoffed.

Hawke shot him a grin.

"I am a pirate after all," she laughed.

Then she turned to Meeko.

"I'm sorry about how I acted when we met," she nodded her head in a little bow, "But I knew that you would have gotten into trouble if you knew I was a pirate and I escaped."

Meeko laughed and gave her an embarrassed smile.

"Well thanks for that," he stammered, "We kind of figured what you were when you went off with them."

Hawke gave him a sympathetic look.

"Well since everyone's here," she laughed, "We should have a party!"

"Yeah!" said Tank, "That sounds like a great idea!"

"Hang on," said Gavin, "We're enemies. We can't be all friendly towards them."

Bran stuck out his tongue at his fellow marine.

"Party pooper!" he mocked.

Just then a voice called over to them.

"Oi Hawke! We're going back inside."

Hawke turned and saw Zoro staring over at her.

"Be right there!" she called back.

Then she turned to the four men.

"I have to go now," she smiled, "But I hope we'll see each other again."

"See ya, Angel!" waved Bran.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

The men watched as Hawke turned her back and joined the green haired swordsman and Straw Hat.

"She hasn't changed at all," sighed Tank.

Meeko smiled.

"I agree," he said, "But I had no idea you two knew her as well."

Bran laughed.

"Yeah, same here," he said, "I guess she makes friends everywhere."

Gavin was still watching after Hawke.

"Well I don't think that guy likes us," he sniggered.

The rest of the men turned and saw the green haired man glaring at them as he followed closely behind Hawke.

"Well that was cold," Meeko shivered as they went out of sight.

"That's the Pirate Hunter, Roronoa Zoro," Tank said, nudging Bran.

The latter's cheeks flushed momentarily and he shoved Tank back.

"I think he's got her on priority," he mumbled, "I don't want to get on that guys bad side."

"That makes me feel better," Meeko said thoughtfully as the others gave him questioning looks, "Even though they _are_ pirates, they're strong enough to protect her. And if the Pirate Hunter is more interested than the others, she'll be safe from any creepy guys."

"You mean like us?" Tank laughed.

Gavin rolled his eyes.

"I don't even know why you care so much for her safety," he grumbled.

Bran fidgeted with his bandana.

"She's just that nice," he said, matter-of-factly, "She has a way of making you want to protect her. There aren't many women like that in the world."

Tank nodded sagely.

Gavin shot them a glare.

"And why are you two acting so high and mighty all of a sudden!" he snapped.

"Hey!" growled Bran, "Watch your tongue!"

Both men raised their fists.

But before their argument could get any worse, the Vice-Admiral called them to line.

"Now then, you guys!" Garp shouted.

"Sir!" the men ran to formation and saluted.

"Fix this wall!" was the order.

"Eh?!" the group gasped.

"But you did that yourself!" called Bran.

"If you want us to fix it, then why did you even break it?" Gavin asked in frustration.

The Vice-Admiral crossed his arms.

"Entering that way is cooler," he stated.

"Please don't break things for reasons like that!" Meeko pleaded.

"Fine," said Tank, stepping forward, "If you want us to fix it, then you need to help too."

"Eh?!" Garp gave them an astounded look, but then he immediately gave way, "Alright."

Bran couldn't help but smile as he rolled his eyes. Their commander didn't put much forethought into most of his actions, but at least he was fair when it came to taking responsibility for them.

They set about getting planks to repair the wall.

Bran saw Hawke go and whisper something into Tank's ear. His friend shook his head and then muttered something back. Then he saw Hawke nod and smile.

She then tried to help Tank with his pile, but he shooed her away.

"You and your crew should be resting right now," Bran heard him say, picking up the lumber, then he leaned down and muttered something into her ear again.

Bran saw Hawke's face turned bright red and she shuffled back into the building.

He quickly went over to Tank.

"What did you say to her?" he asked curiously.

Tank smiled.

"I'll tell you later," he smirked.

Bran rolled his eyes, but he didn't press his friend and the two carried on with their work.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Hawke leaned against the wall next to Zoro and watched the marines patch up the hole in the wall.

"So who were those guys you were talking too?" the swordsman snapped at her over his shoulder.

Hawke blinked and the colour rose in her cheeks.

"Oh, those two are the guys who kidnapped me in Alabasta," she pointed, "And those two were the ones I met on Gunkka Island, way back in the East Blue."

Zoro grunted.

"They sure looked happy to see you," he muttered.

"Well it was nice seeing them too," Hawke stammered, "I mean, it's been a while and it's nice to know that they're okay."

There was an awkward silence.

"So what about those two guys who knew you?" Hawke asked nervously, "How do you know them?"

"Hmm?" Zoro looked over his shoulder at her, "Oh, Coby and Helm-guy? Well Luffy knows them more than I do. Coby joined the marines because of Luffy, and that Helm-guy almost gave me the death penalty. Actually, that was when Luffy and I met and I joined the crew."

Hawke smiled.

"It's nice to see old friends, isn't it?" she sighed.

Zoro frowned.

"They aren't my friends," he snapped.

"Oh?" Hawke reached out and held onto his arm, "But you didn't admit that it wasn't nice to see them."

She smiled.

The swordsman frowned at her, but didn't argue.

"Listen," Hawke sighed, "They're my friends, but they're marines. So we're enemies, and I know that. Plus they know that they need to keep their distance. Apparently you gave them quite the cold stare."

She felt the swordsmans arm relax under her hand.

"Good," he growled.

Hawke felt her face become warm and she smiled.

Then she felt some tapping her on the shoulder and turned to see Sanji.

"So your grandpa is pretty famous isn't he, Hawke-san?" he asked, trying to pull her away from Zoro.

Hawke nodded and gently shook off the cook's hand.

Just then, Garp turned and addressed them.

"By the way, Luffy," he called, "I heard you met your old man."

Hawke stiffened and looked over to Luffy.

"Huh?" her brother looked clueless, "Dad? What do you mean by dad? I have a dad?"

"What's that?" the marine asked, "He didn't introduce himself to you then? I heard he saw you off at Loguetown. Did you see him, Hawke?"

The scout shook her head.

"I don't know what he looks like," she said, "And I don't remember much of Loguetown."

"That's right," muttered Zoro, "You were unconscious when we left."

"What's my dad like?" asked Luffy.

They watched Garp's back as he continued his repair work.

"The name of your father is…" he began picking his nose, "Monkey D. Dragon. He's a revolutionary."

Hawke felt her jaw drop.

_The Dragon?!_ She thought, _the most wanted man in the world is Luffy's father?!_

She could hear the loud gasps and exclamations coming from the marines outside.

"The revolutionary Dragon has a _two children_?!" she heard someone exclaim.

"Luffy-san and his sister are _that_ Dragon's kids…?" another one muttered.

"Then, Dragon is Vice-Admiral Garp's kid…," another gasped, "What the hell is up with this family?"

The rest of the crew looked as stunned as she was. Luffy, of course, was still clueless.

"Dragon?" he asked, "Hey guys, why is everyone so…"

"You idiot!" shouted Sanji, "You don't know Dragon's name?!"

"He's a revolutionary," Hawke spoke to Luffy, "He directly defies the World Government and he encourages countries to overthrow their monarchies. Many have already fallen, but no one knows anything about him so they can't catch him. He's the worst enemy of the Marines and the World Government!"

There was a tense silence.

"Ah!" Garp suddenly spoke up, "I probably shouldn't have said all that."

He let out a loud, booming laugh as the marines stared at him in disbelief.

"Then, forget all that," Garp finished.

There was another silence, then the whole yard exploded in noise.

"What?!" the marines shouted.

"Eh?!" the crew yelled.

Garp just kept laughing.

Hawke rubbed her forehead and let out an exasperated sigh.

"Grampa," she complained, "You always forget what you're saying…"

She went to the tap and filled a glass with water, then brought it over to the Vice-Admiral.

"Here, Grampa," she said as she handed the glass to him, "You finish this wall without telling us any more navy secrets, okay? You'll get into trouble."

Garp smiled as he took the drink from her.

"Thank you, young lady," he said, "Why couldn't I have all grand-daughters? You should go back and continue your training with the navy. You'd make an excellent officer!"

Hawke smiled and rolled her eyes.

"I said no more talking, Grampa," she laughed.

"Alright men!" Garp shouted, "You heard the girl! Get back to work, and no talking!"

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

The wall was soon fixed and the marines began preparing to leave.

Hawke and Luffy stood in the doorway and said goodbye to their grandfather.

"You're my grandchildren," Garp was saying, "So I won't capture you here."

"Okay, see ya," Luffy waved.

Garp immediately punched him in the face.

"That was too quick!" he shouted, "Care more, you fool! I'm your grampa who you haven't seen in a long time!"

"What do you mean!" shouted Luffy, clutching his head, "All you do is hit me!"

"Grampa! Luffy!" Hawke said sternly, putting herself in between the two and raising her hands commandingly, "Calm down, both of you!"

"Yes ma'am," both men said in unison and backed off.

"As usual, you both don't know how to say good bye," Hawke continued, "So I'll say it for you."

She went over and gave Garp a long hug.

"It was really nice seeing you again, Grampa," she said, "Thank you for visiting. Luffy was glad to see you too, even if he doesn't show it in front of you."

Garp squeezed her in a bear hug and then they parted.

"See!" he shouted at Luffy, "That's how you're supposed to treat your grandpa!"

Then he turned and left with his soldiers. Hawke caught sight of Tank, Bran, Meeko and Gavin at the edge of the group. She waved until they were out of sight and then went into the building, where she found Sanji making tea.

"That's a pretty wild grandfather you've got," the cook said as he handed her a cup and saucer.

"And the part about Dragon really surprised me," said Robin, who was seated at the table, "It seems there isn't a single average person in your family."

Hawke sat down on the rug beside Zoro.

"Oh, Dragon isn't my father," she corrected the archeologist.

"Oh?" Robin looked confused, "But you are siblings, are you not?"

Hawke nodded.

"Yes, I am Luffy's sister," she said, "But we don't have to same parents. Garp isn't my real grandfather, but he's always treated me like his grandchild, so it's become this way."

The archeologist smiled.

"I see," she said, "And it seems you really know how to handle those two."

Hawke laughed.

"It isn't easy, let me tell you," she said, "But Grampa seems to listen to me, so I use that to my advantage."

She took a sip from her tea, but it was too hot and she quickly put it back down.

"I think I'll go join Nami in the pool," she said and stood up.

"The pool!?" Sanji suddenly sprang out of nowhere, "Nami-san and Hawke-chan in swim suits!"

The cook sped off towards the backyard of the building. Hawke hesitated.

"Maybe I'll just go out to enjoy the sun, then," she said, "I still haven't bought a new bathing suit anyways."

She saw Zoro's shoulders relax a little and felt a smile grace her lips as she left the room.

Hawke made her way to the room where the girls were sleeping before she went outside. She took off her jacket and put on a clean, white t-shirt and changed into a long, blue and white stripped skirt.

_Since I won't be swimming_, she thought, _I don't want to get sunburned._

As she put her jacket on her bed, a piece of parchment fell out onto the floor.

"The letter," she muttered as she picked it up.

She paused for a moment, then sighed and sat down on the bed, unfolded the letter and reread it.

"So this Salem guy could speak to birds, and that ability ran in his family. He was the last of his line and he thought he was the subject of the prophecy. He was doing research into something dangerous and was headed to Fishman Island."

_Yep, that sums it up, I think,_ she thought.

Robin had said that there were records of families having the ability to speak to birds and that the prophecy was ancient, so those parts of the story seemed to be true.

"But what about all the stuff Cracass said?" she mumbled, "He seemed to know a lot about me without me telling him."

_But if what he said was true_, she thought, her brow furrowing as she tried to make sense of it all_, then he was saying that the Sky Spirit is my father. And that's why I have "strong blood", I think. And Salem was a great, great, great, descendant of the Spirit, or something like that, and that's why he could only talk to ravens…_

"It looks like I might have to believe that legend after all," she sighed and stood up.

She folded the letter back up and tucked it into her jacket pocket.

"But maybe now I should be enjoying myself," she muttered, "After all, Luffy's awake, and I just got to see some old friends!"

She made her way out to the backyard of Dock 1.

The area was much larger than she had anticipated. There were three areas of the pool, layed out in a clover formation, and there was ample poolside space for tables and chairs.

Hawke found a chair under an umbrella and stretched her legs out under its shade.

She sighed in contentment as she listened to the happy shouts of Chimney and Nami.

They, along with Kokoro, were playing volleyball in the water. Sanji had started cooking on a barbecue and quickly ran over to her, offering her a fruity drink, which she accepted.

Hawke sat back and closed her eyes, enjoying her drink and the sun.

_It's nice to not have to do anything,_ she sighed.

But before long, she felt her legs getting stiff and she forced herself out of her nap-like state.

To her surprise, when she opened her eyes, she was greeted with Sanji's heart-shaped eyes bending over her.

"Ah!" she jolted upright, "Sanji! What are you doing?!"

"I'm just here to see if you would like some of my water-water barbecue cooking, Hawke-swan! You look so lovely, lying here in the shade!" the chef swooned over her.

He held out a plate full of kebabs and Hawke took one.

"Thank you, Sanji," she said, "But it looks like Kokoro would like some too."

The old mermaid had jumped out of the water and was standing behind Sanji.

Hawke saw his face turn to an expression of horror and he slowly turned around. After seeing Kokoro he fell to his knees and began slamming his fist into the ground.

"Can't you let me dream!?" he sobbed.

"Sheesh, you're rude," Kokoro muttered.

Just then they heard their captain's telltale yell.

"Oi Sanji! You didn't say the food was ready!"

The captain tore across the pool area and began devouring the food Sanji had just prepared.

He was followed by Zoro, Chopper and Robin.

Soon the Franky Family came to join them and then Franky himself showed up. Before long, Paulie and Iceberg showed up with the rest of the shipbuilders and it began getting quite rowdy. Even Sniperking showed up.

Hawke smiled.

"I guess it's time to party," she sighed and stood up.

More and more people heard their commotion and joined in on the fun. Even the townspeople came to have some food and drink.

The atmosphere was getting contagious, and soon Hawke joined in on the festivities.

She took to the floor and began dancing around to the song Sniperking was singing.

_I hope Usopp apologizes soon,_ she thought, looking up at the sniper who was standing on a tower of chairs, _he won't be able to get away with that for much longer._

After having her fill of dancing, and accompanied by many calls for her return, Hawke joined Nami and Robin at a table to eat and the three of them exchanged stories and laughed at Luffy and Chopper's antics.

The evening wore on and the Strawhat Pirates partied long into the night, celebrating the return of their friend Robin and the fact that they were all safe again.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Tank lay on his bed, staring up at the bottom of the bunk above his.

"Hey," he heard Bran's voice and saw his friend roll over to look down at him.

"What's up?" Tank asked.

"So what did you tell Hawke back there?" Bran asked.

Tank smiled and sat up.

"She came over and asked me to not tell anyone about her wings and to stop calling her Angel," he said quietly, "And to thank us for keeping her secret."

Bran raised his eyebrows.

"For keeping what a secret?" he asked, swinging his legs down.

Tank rolled his eyes.

"That she's the Dark Angel that the marines want to capture so badly!" he exclaimed, "You need to pay more attention."

Bran kicked him gently on the side of his head.

"Hey, I knew that," he grumbled, "But I think we did the right thing in not telling the higher-ups. I can't believe that she's another devil like the ones from O'Hara like Headquarters is saying. I mean, can you see her trying to destroy the world?"

Tank shook his head.

"No," he agreed, "I think it's best if we stay quiet about this…"

They sat in silence for a few moments.

"That family is pretty crazy, eh?" Bran finally muttered.

Tank ran his fingers through his hair.

"Yeah, tell me about it," he sighed, "A grandfather who's a hero of the marines, a father who's the most wanted man in the world, a brother who's declared war on the World Government, and she's the Dark Angel… that's got to be the most epic bloodline in the world!"

He heard Bran sigh and fall back onto his bunk.

"What do we do if we meet them later on," he mumbled, "I mean, we're enemies after all-"

Just then, Meeko and Gavin entered the room and began to occupy their bunks opposite them.

"Are you talking about Miss Hawke?" Meeko asked, catching the last part of their conversation.

Tank nodded.

"Yeah," he said, then looked up to Bran, "We'll just have to manage. But if we want the chance to even try to take her on again, we'll need to train even harder. She took us down like nobody's business! She wasn't kidding when she said she could hold her own."

Bran nodded.

"Oi," Gavin called over, "How did you guys meet her?"

Tank and Bran exchanged looks.

"Well," started Tank, "We kind of captured her…"

Meeko blinked.

"Hey," he laughed, "That's how we met her too! We were ordered to investigate an island and the Strawhats' ship was docked there. But Miss Hawke was the only one on board and we took her into custody."

Tank laughed.

"And it sounded like she escaped without a problem?" he asked.

Gavin scowled, but then he nodded.

"Although it's true that if she had told us outright that she was a pirate, we would've gotten into much more trouble than we did," he muttered.

Tank felt a smile come across his face.

"Yes, she seemed to think more about her captors than she did about herself," he punched Bran's leg, which was still dangling down into his face, "She even cooked our meals for us, eh?"

Bran laughed.

"Yeah," he said, "She's full of surprises."

Gavin let out a groan as he rolled over and pulled up his blanket.

"Well I'm going to get stronger so that next time we meet, I'll be the one to defeat her," he yawned.

"Haha! You wish!" Tank laughed, "That'll be me!"

Meeko went and turned out the light.

"Calm down," he said as he returned to his bed, "If we all work hard, we can get further in the marines. That should be our goal, not trying to capture a girl."

Bran swung his legs up and the men settled down for the night.

The boom of many fireworks could be heard from outside the ship.

"I bet they're having an awesome party up there," grumbled Bran into the darkness.

Tank raised his foot and kicked the upper bunk.

"Well marines aren't invited to a pirate party," he said, "It's one of the sacrifices we have to make."

The group of men became silent and, one by one, dropped off to sleep.


	36. Chapter 36: Bounties and the Sunny

**Chapter 36**

**Bounties and the Thousand Sunny**

The next day, the newspaper came in with news of their raid on Enies Lobby.

Hawke was glad that there was no mention of the Franky Family. They wouldn't have to become fugitives and live undercover, they could stay here and continue constructing and deconstructing ships.

"They blame us for setting the island on fire," Zoro grunted as he read the paper, "Our bounties will go up for sure."

He looked up and gave Hawke a smirk.

She returned it with a smile.

_He's been giving me much more attention lately,_ she thought and blushed, _or maybe I've been giving him more attention…_

She had to admit that she'd caught herself dreamily watching the strong, muscular swordsman more than once. Always causing her to look around frantically, hoping no one had caught her. She had been embarassed when Tank and had told her that Zoro had been giving the other men hostile glances. But she found that she liked that protective gesture on the swordsman's part…

_I think I've fallen hard_, she thought, biting her lip nervously.

"Oh!" exclaimed Chopper, snapping Hawke back to reality, "Will I also get a bounty on my head?!"

"It's probable," said Sanji, taking a drag from his cigarette, "But the most terrible will be me."

He raised his hand.

"A big star appears!" he declared dramatically.

Hawke laughed.

"Well I hope I get one too!" she smiled.

"Eh?" Zoro looked over at her, "Why are you so eager?"

"If I have a bounty on my head," Hawke explained, "Then who will ever think that I'm the Dark Angel! There can't be two bounties for the same person."

Zoro gave her a smirk.

"I guess that'd be good for you," he said and returned to reading the paper.

"What are you getting excited for?!" Nami exploded, "Are you idiots?!"

Everyone put on a serious face and quieted down, but every now and then Hawke could see excited glances being stolen over the navigators head.

_As long as those posters don't come too soon_, she thought, _we can't go anywhere until Franky finishes our ship._

She blinked.

"Oi, Luffy!" she called, "Did you know that Franky said he'd build us a ship for free?"

The captain sprang out of his chair and began waving his limbs around excitedly.

"Really?!" he shouted, "Franky's building us a ship?!"

"Oh yeah," Sanji handed out sandwhiches to everyone, "You were asleep when that happened."

"How about that!" shouted Luffy in excitement, "He was a good guy after all! What kind of ship will it be? I'm looking forwad to it!"

A constant stream of excited questions and comments continued to spill from Luffy's mouth as he bounced around the room.

There was a commotion as Nami discovered that almost all of their money had been spent on the party. The navigator beat Luffy pretty badly, so Hawke suggested that the girls all go out for a shopping trip to take their mind off things. After all, there was a little money left.

The three women spent the rest of their vacation time looking through the shops and being accosted by reporters and citizen who were eager to thank them and hear their stories about what had happened at Enies Lobby.

Hawke and Robin were exiting a book store when Zoro suddenly appeared before them. Hawke choked on her breath and tried to stifle her laughter as she saw what the swordsman was wearing and carrying.

He had a very small, tight yellow shirt on and had three very young babies tucked into it in a kind of chest pouch thing. It looked like he was out of breath. He was walking with hunched shoulders and didn't seem to be paying attention to what was around him.

Hawke and Robin fell into step on either side of the swordsman.

"Damn, I'm tired," he grumbled.

"Looks pretty rough," Robin said quietly, covering her smile.

"Yeah, whatever," Zoro grunted, still looking ahead, "Why do I have to do something like this?"

"And what exactly are you doing?" Hawke asked in amusement.

She couldn't help but feel a little flushed. Seeing Zoro taking care of babies was surprisingly enjoyable for her. She had never thought of Zoro in the role of a father, or having anything to do with children at all. Sanji was usually the one who was good with kids. But Hawke found herself really liking this side of the swordsman.

Just then, Zoro seemed to notice who he was talking to.

"You?!" he looked mortified as he glanced back and forth between Hawke and Robin.

Before they could answer him, he pushed the women into an alley and confronted them.

"Damn," he muttered.

"Robin! Hawke!" they heard Nami's voice calling, "Where'd they go?"

Hawke smiled as Zoro tensed and peeked around the corner into the street.

Robin stepped back out.

"You don't have to worry, I won't tell anyone," the archeologist smiled, "And besides, it suits him, don't you think, Hawke?"

The scout felt the colour rise in her cheeks, matching the hue that Zoro was showing off.

"Haha," she gave a nervous little laugh, "Yeah, don't worry, Zoro. I won't tell anyone either."

Robin caught up with Nami, but Hawke hesitated at the mouth of the alleyway.

She looked back to Zoro, who was still standing there with the babies' strapped to his chest.

"It really does suit you," she blushed, "Do you need any help with them?"

Zoro's look of mortification increased ten-fold and he shook his head furiously, his teeth clenched and his face becoming an even brighter shade of red.

"Alright then," Hawke laughed, "Well, make sure you come back before it gets dark. And not with them," she pointed at his chest.

Then she turned and caught up with the other girls.

"Huh?" Nami glanced over at her, "Why are you so flushed, Hawke? Are you feeling sick?"

The scout shook her head.

"No, I feel fine," she stammered, "Let's go look in that store."

But before the trio could enter the shop, there was a flurry of feathers and Hawke felt a weight on her shoulder.

She heard a caw and felt feathers tickling her ear.

"Caracass!" she exclaimed as she saw the raven, "What are you doing here?"

"What?" Nami asked, "Hawke, what is that bird doing on your shoulder?"

Hawke gave the navigator an embarrassed smile.

"I don't know," she admitted, "But I met him a few days ago. Him and a mechanic."

"Well I'll be damned," Hawke heard a familiar voice behind her.

She turned and smiled.

"Speak of the devil," she laughed, "Hayato!"

The short old man bowed his head.

"It's nice to see you again, Hawke-san," he said gruffly, "You have friends who are just as beautiful as you are."

Hawke blushed and introduced her crewmates.

"Nami, Robin, this is Hayato and the raven is Caracass," she motioned to each as she mentioned them.

"Well it is certainly nice to meet you, Hayato-san, Caracass-san," Robin nodded, "Nami and I shall continue shopping, you can catch up with us later."

She waved at Hawke and gently tugged Nami along.

Hawke turned back to face Hayato.

"We're just enjoying our vacation while our new ship is being built," she explained, "What are you doing in this part of town?"

The old man gave her a smirk.

"I was just taking a trip down memory lane," he said, pointing down the street, "That's the bar I used to work at."

Hawke followed his pointing finger to a small building on the corner. Caracass shuffled on her shoulder and she glanced at him out of the corner of her eye.

"Have you decided?" the raven croaked quietly into her ear, "Will you carry on Salem's search?"

Hawke blinked.

"I guess I will," she said quietly, "I want to find out what Salem was looking for…It might be really important…And maybe it's what I'm looking for too."

She saw Hayato smile.

"You are going to go far, missy," he chuckled.

Hawke watched as he reached into his jacket and took out an old-looking camera.

"Would you mind if I took your picture?" he asked politely.

Hawke smiled and put down her parcels, smoothing out her shirt and skirt.

"Are you planning to show it off after my captain becomes the Pirate King?" she asked, winking at him, "You'll have a one of a kind collection started."

"That's exactly what I'm going to do," Hayato grinned and raised his camera, "I can tell you're going to do great things. You have the same aura as that Gold Roger did."

Hawke felt Caracass shift his position on her shoulder, but she smiled and waited until the flash of the camera had gone off before she moved.

"Thank you very much, Hawke-san," Hayato bowed, "For the picture and for carrying on Salem's will."

Hawke smiled.

"You don't need to thank me," she blushed, "And I promise to send you back some letters."

Caracass cawed happily.

"I would like that," Hayato said quietly, "Well, you better get going. Your friends will be waiting for you."

Hawke stepped forward and hugged the old man. She felt Caracass hop off her shoulder onto Hayato's.

"You've helped me a lot," she whispered into his ear, "Much more than you know… thank you."

She stepped back and picked up her parcels.

"I hope to meet you again," Hawke bowed respectfully.

"Same to you," Hayato returned her bow.

"Farewell, Princess," Caracass croaked, "You will find the truth."

Hawke blinked and watched as the man and the bird disappeared into the crowd.

Then she turned and quickly hurried on to find Nami and Robin.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

The crew stood around in tense silence.

"It's unfortunate," Sanji sighed, blowing out a cloud of smoke, "Just for this time, what he's saying is right."

"I agree," Hawke said quietly, "Usopp needs to apologize. That's the only way he can rejoin the crew."

She glanced back to Zoro. He was standing in front of the doors with his sword embedded in the floor, blocking the way.

"We can't keep trusting a guy who started such a thing on a whim," Zoro said seriously, "Its simple. If Usopp's first words are a deep apology, fine. But if not, then there's no place for him to come back to."

Hawke held her arms around her waist and looked at the floor. She knew that this was the right thing to do, especially for Luffy. But it was really painful to think about carrying on without Usopp.

Zoro caught sight of her stance and sheathed his sword.

"What we're doing isn't a childish pirate game!" he snapped.

Luffy's shoulders relaxed.

"You're right" the captain said quietly, "We've separated once. There are still many days until the ship is ready. We'll wait for him quietly."

He sat down on the ground.

Hawke clenched her fists and went to the window, drawing back the curtain that Nami had closed a few moments prior. She looked out at her reflection in the dark glass.

_Usopp, you idiot!_ She thought, her fingers clenching around her arm, _hurry up and come back!_

She heard footsteps coming up behind her and felt a soft touch on her hip.

"If he apologizes, everything will be fine," Zoro said quietly.

Hawke stayed still, keeping her gaze locked on the window.

"He will…" she muttered, leaning towards him a little, feeling the pressure on her hip and sighing, "I know he will."

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

A few days later, the crew was happy to find that the logpose had finally set.

"Do you know where you're headed next?" Kokoro asked with a smile.

"No," said Nami, peering at the logpose on her wrist, "It looks like it's pointing downwards."

Kokoro laughed.

"That's right," she said, taking a drink from her bottle, "The next island is Fishman Island!"

Hawke's ears perked up.

"Fishman Island!" she exclaimed.

"Mermaid Island!" Sanji was extatic, "At last!"

He began spinning around the room, spouting praises about mermaids before he was struck down by a glance in Kokoro's direction again.

Kokoro then informed them of the Florian Triangle. A mysterious sea where ships sail in with full crews and then sail out months or years later with no one aboard. She cautioned them to beware of that dangerous sea.

"Scary," Hawke shuddered.

"Don't worry," Sanji said, returning to his usual self, "I plan on stocking up on previsions in case we run into trouble."

Suddenly, the doors burst open and Chimney flopped onto the floor.

"Strawhats!" she exclaimed, "Franky told us to come call you! The ship is finished and it looks great!"

"Awesome!" shouted Luffy, "That was fast! Let's get going!"

The crew busied themselves with packing up their supplies.

Just then, another call came from outside.

"Strawhats!"

Hawke looked out the window.

"It's the Franky Family," she said.

The crew went outside to see what they wanted.

The group fell to their knees, panting.

"Did you see the wanted posters?!" one of them panted.

"Wanted posters?" Luffy asked.

"You've been given an unexpected bounty Strawhat," another Franky Family member gasped, "Everyone else as well!"

Hawke's eyes lit up as wanted posters were layed on the ground in front of them.

"All eight of you now have bounties!" the Franky Family exclaimed, "Strawhat Luffy: 300 million beri, Pirate Hunter Zoro: 120 million beri, Cat Burglar Nami: 16 million beri, Sharp Eyes Hawke: 50 million beri, Cottoncandy Lover Chopper: 50 beri, Devil Child Nico Robin: 80 million beri, Black Leg Sanji: 77 million beri."

The crew's reactions were varied and instantaneous.

"Sharp Eyes?" Hawke crossed her arms, satisfied, "It's not a bad epithet. And 50 million's pretty good, now I won't be suspected."

Hawke surveyed the rest of the posters.

"There's even one for Sniperking!" Luffy pointed, laughing.

"Hang on!" the Franky Family interjected, "I know you have a lot you want to discuss, but we have a favour to ask of you!"

The crew gave the Family their attention as the man who'd had their posters took another one out of his pocket.

"Cyborg Franky: 44 million beri," he stammered.

"This is terrible! Aniki's got a bounty on his head!" exclaimed the Family, "We somehow managed to avoid it, but Franky couldn't. Aniki's life will be in danger if he stays here at Water 7. If he get's caught this time, we won't have the power to save him! That's why we came to talk to you… I beg of you, even if it's against his own will, take Aniki out to sea with you!"

Hawke smiled as she saw Luffy stand up.

"You don't have to say it," their captain smiled, "I've already decided to make him my shipwright!"

The Franky Family was elated and immediately left, saying something about having unusual things to do.

The crew resumed their packing.

Hawke picked up her backpack and held up her wanted poster.

"I didn't see any reporters at the party," she muttered.

The picture of her had been taken while she was dancing during their celebration, you could even see Usopp's huge pile of chairs in the background. She was wearing her white t-shirt and long, blue and white stipped skirt. Her hair was down and her braid was keeping her bangs out of her face. The camera had caught her in a finishing pose. Her legs were crossed and her hands extended outwards, towards the viewer. The skirt was flaring out around her waist and hips. She was facing the camera full on, giving it a happy smile.

"At least it's cute," she sighed.

"That's a pretty good amount for a first time," Hawke started as she heard Zoro's voice in her ear.

"Well technically it's my second," she smiled, turning to face him, "But this time everyone knows it's me!"

She held up the poster.

"What do you think?" she asked.

To her surprise, Zoro squinted at the picture with intense concentration. Then he stepped back and looked her up and down.

"What are you doing?" Hawke asked in embarrassment.

The swordsman smirked, gave a satisfied grunt and turned to leave.

Hawke stayed rooted to the spot, her face flushed.

"Hey!" she shook her head and ran after him, "What was that for?!"

But she couldn't get an answer out of him, so she followed the others through the city in a contemplative, if slightly blushing, silence.

The crew made their way down to Scrap Island and Iceberg unveiled their new ship.

"It's amazing!" Hawke gasped as her eyes swept over the lion's head, the grassy deck and the huge sails.

She followed Luffy and the others as they boarded the ship and began exploring it, making a beeline for the mast. She climbed up to the small room that was at the top of it.

She lifted the hatch in the floor and climbed in.

The room was large enough so that there was plenty of space to move around in it, and there were weights and benches lined up against the walls.

"Is this supposed to be a training room?" she wondered.

Then her eyes caught sight of the crow's nest, that was on the other mast, through on of the windows and she climbed down and over to it.

"This is perfect!" Hawke exclaimed as she boosted herself into the basket, "This is much bigger than the Merry's! There's even enough room to actually lie down. "

She hopped around excitedly and then descended to the main deck.

Bending down, she ran her fingers through the grass.

"This is the most amazing ship I've ever seen!" she sighed happily.

Then she looked around.

"Where are the guys?" she asked as she stood up.

Only Nami and Robin were left on the deck.

Robin turned to her and smiled.

"They've gone to bring Franky back," she said.

Hawke joined the women at the rail.

"We sure are lucky, aren't we," she sighed as she looked out at Scrap Island.

"Indeed," Robin said from beside her.

"There's so much room for my trees!" Nami chirped happily.

Hawke looked down at the Galley-La workers who were resting on the island.

"Hey, Iceberg!" she waved down, "Paulie! Thank you so much!"

The men returned her wave.

Just then, something came rocketing out of the sky and landed with a tremendous crash a ways away from the ship.

"What was that?" Nami shaded her eyes.

Hawke looked out in the same direction and recognized Franky.

"Eek!" she screeched and covered her eyes, "Why isn't he wearing pants?!"

Just then, Luffy and Chopper returned and triumphantly waved a speedo in the air.

"If you want your pants back, you'll have to join our crew!" Luffy shouted across to the Franky.

Initially, the cyborg refused. But Robin asked if she could use a little force and she managed to immobilize him by grabbing his exposed sensitive area.

"Ah!" shouted Luffy, "Oi, Robin! I still want him to be a man when he joins our crew!"

"They'll be torn off!" Chopper wailed.

Hawke stared at Robin in disbelief.

"That must feel gross," she stammered.

The archeologist gave her a smile before giving another squeeze.

Franky wailed at the top of his lungs.

"Don't be to rough, Robin!" Nami gasped as the cyborg flailed about in the debris.

"I won't let go unless you give us a good reason not come with us!" Robin called across to Franky and squeezed her hands tighter.

Thankfully, Iceberg went out and spoke with the cyborg. It ended with Franky lashing about, crying, but Hawke saw that the archeologist had lowered her hands.

After that, Sanji and Zoro returned saying that they had to leave because the marines had come back to attack them.

Luffy threw Franky's pants back to him.

"Come on, Franky!" he called down, "Get on my ship!"

The cyborg stood up and flashed them a smile.

"It can't be helped!" he declared, "Your ship's shipwright will be the great Franky!"

"Alright!" Luffy whooped, "A new nakama!"

"Hurray!" Hawke cheered.

But she cast a worried glance back at the city.

_Usopp…_

Her mind went back to the story Hayato had told her about Salem and Roger's crew. Would the same thing happen to them and Usopp?

"Set sail!" Luffy called, snapping Hawke out of her thoughts.

"Aye, captain!" she said and ran to help unfurl the sails.

"Oi, Luffy!" Nami snapped, giving him an angry look.

"Luffy!" Chopper whimpered.

"Aren't you waiting for one more?" Franky asked, setting his bag down on the grass.

"I've waited," Luffy said in a strained voice, "We waited for him the entire time in that place, but he didn't come."

Hawke could see the beads of sweat on her brother's forehead. She knew he was trying to be a strong captain, but it was clear what his thoughts were.

She glanced over at Zoro.

He was sitting on the grass with his back against the wall.

She blinked when she saw the hand that was clutching his sword begin to shake.

_So he's nervous too_, she thought, _even though he was talking so tough._

Luffy let out a nervous laugh. It pained Hawke to hear the strained sound and she stalked off to the rail as the ship began moving.

Just then, there was a whistling sound and the water around the ship exploded.

"What?!" Hawke gasped as she was thrown off her feet, "The marines found us already?!"

"Grandpa!?" she heard Luffy exclaim.

Hawke ran to the rail and suddenly they heard a voice coming over the water.

"Oi Luffy! Hawke! Can you hear me?"

"That's him!" Hawke muttered.

"Oi Grandpa!" shouted Luffy, "What's wrong with you!? Didn't you say you weren't going to capture us here?!"

"Well a lot of things happened!" shouted Garp, "I'm sorry, but you're gunna die in this sea!"

"What?!" Luffy gasped.

"There's no apology I can give you, but I'll take care of you both myself!"

Hawke squinted and saw a soldier passing him something.

"Everyone duck!" she shouted, "He's throwing a cannon ball!"

"With his bare hands?!" Sanji exclaimed as the ball whistled through the air and barely missed them.

"We have no choice!" shouted Nami, "We have to escape or our new ship will get blown up!"

"Full speed ahead!" Luffy yelled, "We'll smash those cannonballs!"

Hawke kept her watch at the rail.

"He's going to throw a whole bunch at the same time!" she shouted.

_Damn_, she thought, her eyes going back to the shore, _is he really not coming?_

Just then Chopper let out an excited squeal.

"He's there!" the reindeer ran over to the rail, "Usopp came!"

Hawke felt her heart skip a beat and she turned to scan the crowd.

"Oi, Hawke!" Zoro shouted at her, "We could use some help over here!"

"R-right!" Hawke answered, tearing her eyes away and taking out her sword, slicing through an incoming cannon ball.

"Protect the ship!" Luffy yelled his order as he bounced some of the shots back at the marines.

Chopper ran frantically around the ship.

"Luffy, Usopp is calling for us!" he yelled.

"I can't hear him," was the reply.

"Zoro!" the reindeer wailed.

"I can't hear anything," the swordsman grunted.

"You liars!" cried the doctor.

"Chopper!" Hawke said, landing beside him and put her hand on his hat, "He needs to apologize!"

The reindeer looked at her with watery eyes. But then he bit his lip and nodded, turning and running back down to the rail.

Hawke grit her teeth and lept up to cut through another barrage of cannon balls.

_Come on, Usopp!_ she thought_, I know you have it in you!_

"I'M SORRY!"

The words sent a ripple through the crew as they came over the water.

Hawke turned and stared back towards the shore.

"I'm sorry for my stubbornness! I was wrong!"

"Usopp!" Hawke gasped and felt tears coming to her eyes.

"Even though I was stubborn until now! Even though I said I was leaving the crew! I want to change all that but I can't! I can't, so I beg of you!"

Hawke ran to the rail and looked back at the fading shore. She could just make out the form of the sniper, kneeling on the ground, watching the ship as it sailed away.

"Please take me back with you guys! Just one more time! Let me be your nakama!"

Hawke felt her smile widen. She looked over and saw Luffy shoot out his arm towards the shore. She watched as Usopp looked up and saw the hand outstretched in front of him.

"Take it, Usopp," she smiled.

"You idiot!" shouted Luffy, his face a blubbering mess, "Hurry up and grab on!"

As soon as Hawke saw the sniper's hand grab her brother's, she felt a huge sense of relief.

"He did it!" she gasped, running over and hugging Luffy, who began bawling onto her shoulder as he pulled Usopp out to them.

As the sniper flew aboard, he collided with the siblings and they all tumbled to the deck.

"We're finally complete again!" shouted Luffy, jumping up and screaming to the sky, "Let's hurry and get outta this bombardment to go on more adventures!"

Hawke stood up, her eyes drifting back to the shore one more time.

She caught sight of a black shape perched on the wrecked mast of a ship out on Scrap Island.

"Goodbye, Caracass, Hayato," she whispered, "I'm heading to Fishman Island. I'll find out what Salem was looking for!"

The black silhouette spread its wings and took off, disappearing back into the city.

_Alright_, Hawke squared her shoulders and turned her back on Water 7,_ it's time to escape!_

"Hurry up!" Franky was shouting, "Furl the sails!"

"That's right!" Luffy yelled, "Furl the sails!"

Hawke jumped into action and helped Zoro wring up the main sail.

"What is Franky planning?" she called over to the swordsman.

"Hell if I know," he called back, "As long as it gets us out of here!"

They descended to the deck and joined the others.

"We furled the sails, Franky," Hawke panted, "Hurry and get us out of here!"

"Not yet!" the cyborg raised his hand, "We haven't named the ship yet."

"The ship's name?!" shouted Sanji, still kicking cannon balls away, "At a time like this?!"

"A ship without a name won't be any good at sailing," countered the shipwright.

"I just thought of an awesome name for it!" Luffy raised his hand, "The Bear! The Polar Bear Lion!"

"That's such a weird name for a ship!" Usopp retorted.

"Then the Tiger Wolf Lion!" Luffy continued.

Hawke rolled her eyes.

"Well Lion is a good start," Franky said, lifting up his sunglasses, "Iceberg suggested this name for it, since it's a ship that can sail a thousand seas… the Thousand Sunny!"

"That's so cool!" Chopper jumped around the deck.

"That's much better than the Dingo Gorilla Lion name I just thought of!" Luffy said excitedly.

"That's even better than the Lionel Master that I thought of," Zoro muttered.

"Better than my Being of Darkness…" Robin put in.

"And my Monsieur Sunflower," Sanji admitted.

Hawke smiled.

"I like it better than my Rising Sun," she giggled, "A ship that can sail a thousand seas sounds nice."

"Let's go with Ice-pop's name!" decided Luffy.

"Nice to meet you, Sunny!" Chopper continued to bounce around the deck.

"Now that the name is decided, our trip is finally underway," grunted Zoro.

Just then Hawke noticed Franky off pouting in a corner.

"What's up with him?" she asked.

"Oi Franky," Sanji had noticed him to, "Hurry up and shake off this so called secret weapon!"

"Yeah, make haste," Zoro added, "The warship has almost caught up to us."

"I know, shut up!" the cyborg stood up, "Take one last look at the beautiful Water Metropolis. In moments, you won't even be able to see this isand's shadow."

"I see," Luffy said, "Then…"

He jumped onto the rail.

Hawke looked up at her brother curiously as he took a deep breath.

"Grandpa!" he shouted at the top of his lungs, "Also Coby and… I'm glad I had the chance to see you after a long time!"

"You forgot the other guy's name, didn't you," Hawke sighed.

"What are you talking about, Luffy!" Garp called over, "There are still many cannon balls left! Don't you underestimate me!"

He drew back his arm and shot another cannon ball at them, but Luffy easily punched it out of the way.

"From now on, we'll be serious about escaping!" he called over, "Let's meet again some day!"

Hawke smiled and climbed up beside her brother.

"Bye Grampa!" she called, "Let's meet again, Meeko, Gavin, Tank, Bran!"

"I'll show you to underestimate me!" Garp roared.

Just then, a huge shadow emerged from the marine ship.

"What's that?" Luffy stared across the water.

Hawke's jaw dropped.

"It's a giant cannon ball!" she shouted, jumping back down, "Franky! Get us out of here!"

The crew watched as the enormous ball was launched and descended down on them.

"We're dead!" shouted the crew.

Suddenly, right at the last second, there was a bright light from the ship's rudder and they were shot forward. They flew up into the air at an amazing speed.

Hawke watched as the sea flew by below them and Water 7 became a speck on the horizon.

"This is awesome!" Luffy and Chopper joined her at the rail.

"I remember this sensation," Usopp muttered, "When Merry flew…"

Franky came up on deck.

"There's nothing that your little ship could do that this one can't do better," the shipwright declared proudly, "However, that ship's brave soul lives in the Thousand Sunny!"

Hawke felt a wide smile spread across her face.

"Merry!" she sighed and stroked her hand along the rail.

They landed with a thud back onto the water and sailed on.

"I can't wait to see Fishman Island!" Hawke let a little of her excitement show.

"You seem pretty eager to get there," Zoro muttered as he came up beside her, "Why the sudden interest?"

Hawke smiled at the swordsman.

"I met someone in Water 7 who got me interested in going there," she said mysteriously, "There's someone there I want to meet, if I can."

"Huh?" Zoro raised his eyebrow at her.

Hawke shuffled her feet and became shy.

_But I should tell someone,_ she thought.

"There was someone who was… kind of my ancestor," she started, reaching out to grab his hand, searching for some reassurance, "His name was Salem and he was part of Gold Roger's crew until they came to Water 7. Then he left the crew and went on to search for something."

Zoro was watching her. Hawke blushed when she felt him squeeze her hand in return.

"He was searching for something?" he asked huskily.

She nodded.

"And I want to find out what it was," she said, taking the letter out of her jacket pocket, "I met an old man named Hayato and his friend, a raven named Caracass. Caracass sailed with Salem on Gold Roger's crew. Anyways, they gave me this."

She let the swordsman read the letter.

"It sounds like he was being chased," he said as he finished and handed it back to her.

"Yeah," said Hawke, putting the parchment back into her pocket again, "And this was the last letter he sent back. That was twenty years ago."

She looked out at the gently rolling waves.

There was a small pause.

"So when you say this Salem guy was your ancestor…" Zoro muttered.

A confused look passed over Hawke's face.

"Well, he could talk to ravens," she muttered, taking pauses in between her thoughts, "And Caracass said that he was a very distant grandson of the Sky Spirit and the "old generation"… and he said that I was the direct daughter of the Spirit, so I am the start of the "new generation"…I guess I'll have to believe that my father was a man possessed by the Sky Spirit… because that's the only way this all makes sense."

Zoro had let her take her time, which she was grateful for. Hawke leaned sideways and rested her head on his shoulder.

She watched his chest begin to rise and fall at a faster pace, matching her increasing heart beat.

"Well it sounds like you're figuring things out," he said quietly.

Hawke smiled and looked up to greet the swordsman's gaze.

They stood in silence for a moment.

Her breath caught in her throat as she registered just how close their faces were.

"Umm," she stammered, looking down.

Then she caught sight of the three swords at the swordsman's waist.

She slowly reached out and traced the hilt of the one that had been rusted away.

"Are you doing okay?" she asked quietly, "I know they're very important to you…"

Zoro stiffened.

"I think so," he muttered jerkily, "But I'll need a new one soon. I can't do three-sword style with only two swords."

Hawke could tell that he was keeping his true feelings hidden. She pulled him into a tight hug.

"Take your time," she said quietly, "Losing a dear friend is hard. You don't have to rush forward."

She felt his body stiffen, but then smiled as Zoro relaxed into her embrace.

"Hey… Hawke?" he muttered quietly into her ear.

The scout stepped back.

"Yes?" she asked.

Suddenly they heard Luffy's voice call up from the main deck.

"Everyone!" he shouted.

Zoro seemed to snap out of his thoughts and frowned.

"L-let's go then," he stammered, turning and heading for the main deck.

Hawke smiled after him, feeling a warm sensation in her chest.

She quickly joined the rest of the crew, gathered before their captain.

A table and some mugs had been assembled. The crew each took one and raised it.

"Then for the return of Robin and Usopp!" Luffy started, "And for our new nakama, Franky! And the pirate ship The Thousand Sunny! Kanpia!"

Hawke shoved her mug up into the air with a huge smile.

"Kanpai!" the crew shouted.

Everyone laughed and enjoyed their picnic in the sun, on their new ship, with their nakama, old and new.

"Let's go!" shouted Luffy, "Our next step is Fishman Island!"


	37. Chapter 37: A Calm Day

**Chapter 37**

**A Calm Day**

The crew enjoyed sunny days and good winds as they sailed onwards.

Hawke had lots of fun watching Usopp and Franky work on their projects, continuing her studies with Chopper, and resuming her training with Zoro.

The swordsman quickly made the training room his preferred place on the ship, and Hawke would often join him in his training. She knew that the fight at Enies Lobby had pushed her up to a new level and she had to work hard to keep her body and reflexes sharp. Plus she found herself wanting to spend more time with the swordsman.

Zoro seemed to enjoy having a regular sparing partner. Before now, their training sessions had been random, whenever either of them had felt like it. But now that there was a room dedicated to training, they could focus better.

After a particularily strenuous sparing session, Hawke sat back against the wall, panting.

"You've got some new moves," she smiled across at the swordsman, who was leaning against the wall opposite her.

"Yeah," he grinned, "I found a new style while I was fighting that square giraffe guy."

Hawke gave him a smile.

"We're getting stronger!" she sighed happily, taking a large drink of water.

She poured some out her hand and wiped her forehead and neck, some drops falling down onto her tank top.

_It feels good, working so hard,_ she thought as she felt the cool water on her skin.

Then she frowned.

"I want to work on aerial combat," she said, "But I won't be able to actually use my wings if it comes down to it… its a little annoying, having to keep them hidden."

Zoro stood up and stretched his arms.

"It's true that that could give you an advantage in a fight," he grunted, "Even if you can't use them, you should still train some techniques in case of an emergency."

Hawke nodded.

"Then that's what I'll focus on next," she stood up and stretched.

Then she went over and looked out one of the windows, surveying the sea around them. There was no island or ship in sight.

She smiled and turned, glancing over at Zoro. He was wiping the sweat off his forehead with a towel.

Hawke felt her eyes tracing over his abdomen.

_Geez_, she forced her gaze away, blushing, _you need to stop being so obvious! Either that or you need to see if he likes you back and make it official… or just stay as friends._

She hunched her shoulders, feeling her stomach knot up. She couldn't bring herself to outright ask Zoro about his feelings. She would just have to settle for enjoying their training sessions.

_But what was he going to tell me?_ she recalled, _he was going to say something right after we left Water 7…_

She turned back to Zoro, but he had already begun lifting his weights again.

Hawke closed her mouth and sighed.

"I'm going out," she said and opened the hatch, "I need to stretch my wings."

She heard a grunt as she prepared to descend.

"Don't go too far."

Hawke smiled.

"I won't," she called over her shoulder.

Then she lowered herself onto the rungs of the mast and looked down to the deck.

Chopper and Usopp were sitting on the grass, playing with one of Usopp's inventions. Robin was sitting in a lawn chair, reading. Nami was sunbathing and being waited on by Sanji. Hawke raised her head and saw Luffy sitting on the lion's head.

She spread her wings and jumped off the mast, letting herself freefall for a second before catching the breeze and soaring upwards.

Hawke felt the sun warm her face and the wind whip through her hair.

She extended her wings out as far as they could reach, taking long, slow wing beats, and speeding out over the water. Flying lower, she skimmed over the waves, reaching her hand down to trail it along the surface.

Then she sensed an approaching air current and caught it, riding it up to the clouds. She let the wind push over her and did a graceful backflip.

Her heart soared as she showed off her aerial skills, doing loop-the-loops and twirls, diving and flipping through the air.

After she'd gotten the stiffness out of her wings, she flew back towards the Sunny. She smiled as she saw Luffy bouncing up and down on his spot, waving his fists in the air.

"Oi, Hawke!" she could hear his voice yelling out to her, "Take me for a ride! Don't keep all the fun to yourself!"

She swooped down and grabbed one of her brother's outstretched hands and yanked him up with her.

"Woohoo!" shouted the captain as he wrapped his limbs around her.

Hawke smirked and suddenly shot upwards, feeling Luffy's body stretch back, dangling below her from the force of her speed.

"Woah, Hawke!" Luffy laughed, his head bouncing back to its proper place, "That was fast! Let's go higher!"

Hawke followed his suggestion and she flew up and into the clouds.

"The Sunny sure is amazing," she sighed as the ship disappeared below them, "Franky really outdid himself."

"Yeah," laughed Luffy.

Then there was a pause.

"Hey, Hawke?" he asked, sounding suddenly serious.

She turned her head to look back to him.

"Yeah, Luffy," she smiled.

"Who's Salem?" the captain asked.

Hawke's eyes widened.

"What?" she started, "Where did you hear his name?"

Luffy tried to look innocent.

"I was just making sure you were doing okay last night…" he said, looking over his shoulder and pursing his lips.

"Luffy!?" Hawke exclaimed, skirting the edge of a cloud, "Were you up while I was keeping watch?! I'm sorry that I fell asleep…but what were you doing up at that hour?"

"I thought you'd be lonely up there so I went to see you," the rubberman explained hurriedly, "You were talking in your sleep about some guy named Salem."

Hawke sighed.

"Salem is someone I was told about in Water 7," she explained, "He was on Gold Roger's crew, but then left it and went to research something."

"Oh?" Luffy looked interested, "He was on the Pirate King's crew!? That's so cool! What was he looking for?"

"Well that's what I want to find out," Hawke said, swooping back down towards the waves, "Whatever it was, I think it's important."

She smiled at her brother as he held onto her tightly.

"But were you lonely up there?" Luffy asked her.

_Did he even listen to me?_ Hawke rolled her eyes.

She caught another wind current and flew in a large loop, backflipping through the air.

But as she did so, she caught a fleeting look in her brother's eyes.

She realized he was actually scared she had been lonely.

_Why is he worrying all of a sudden?_ she thought.

"I'm fine, Luffy," she smiled reassuringly, "I won't take the watch every night. But you can come visit for a bit once and a while, if you're up. Would that make you feel better?"

The captain nodded.

"That way you won't fall asleep!" he laughed.

Hawke blushed.

"Well that doesn't usually happen," she stuck her lip out in a pout, "I can usually stay awake."

But she smiled and soared back towards the Sunny.

She flew down and landed back on the lion's head.

"Here you are, Captain!" she smiled, giving him a wink, "Back in your spot."

Luffy gave her a wide smile.

"Thanks, Sissy," he laughed and sat back down, pulling his hat down over his eyes.

Hawke stood over her brother for a moment.

"Hey, Luffy," she said quietly, bending down, "Being with you and the crew makes me really happy."

She wasn't sure why she was saying this, but she didn't want Luffy to worry so much.

The captain looked up and gave her a wide smile.

"That's good!" he laughed, "I want you to be happy."

Hawke smiled and beat her wings again, lowering herself down onto the grass of the main deck.

"Hawke!" Chopper sprang up and ran over to her, "I want a ride too!"

She laughed as she looked down at the excited reindeer. His eyes were shining and he was jumping around her feet.

"Okay," she agreed, "But only a short one, it's getting late."

"Hurray!" the doctor jumped up and down before Hawke took him up in her arms.

She made sure not to fly too high with Chopper, but she did a few loops and dives. The reindeer squealed in delight and had the time of his life.

_Days like these make everything we have to go through worth it_, Hawke thought warmly as she landed and let doctor down.

"Oi, Chopper! Come check this out!" Usopp called over, holding up an invention of his and waving it in the air.

Franky had joined the sniper in their absence.

"That was some suuuper cool flying there, Hawke!" the cyborg gave her a thumbs up.

Hawke waved and smiled.

Usopp was still waving whatever contraption he had in the air.

"That looks really cool!" Chopper squeaked and sped across the grass, passing Robin as she got up and made her way over to where Hawke was standing.

"May I see your wings?" the archeologist asked.

The scout blinked in surprise, but she nodded and extended her wings towards the archeologist.

Robin reached out and stroked her feathers.

"They are very beautiful," the taller woman smiled, "Are the feathers organized in a specific manner?"

Hawke nodded, but gave her a questioning look.

Robin smiled at her.

"I was wondering if it would be possible for me to use wings as well," she explained calmly, "I wanted to see if the pattern of the feathers was important in the structure."

The scout was immediately interested.

"Wow, that would be really cool!" she said and adjusted her wings so Robin could get a better view of her feathers, "And yes, the position is really important. The primary feathers are the longer ones there and they supply the thrust. And these are the secondary feathers, that's how I can get lift."

"Fascinating," Robin examined her wing, "They really are as black as a raven's…"

Hawke shot the archeologist another look as she trailed off.

"Yeah," the scout said, "I think they got that colour from the ink in the formula."

Robin met her gaze.

"I wonder if it was just chance…" the archeologist said quietly, "What would have happened if you had white wings?..."

Hawke blinked and ruffled her feathers.

"Well then I guess my life would be a little less complicated," she smiled to Robin, who had lowered her hand from Hawke's wings.

The archeologist gave her a small smile.

"Would you not be the Dark Angel?" she asked, "Or would the prophecy say "white wings"?"

Hawke gave her a confused look.

"Who knows," she mumbled, bringing her wings back into their tattoo form.

She went and leaned out over the rail, looking down into the water.

"What would have happened if I'd stayed and waited for Luffy, instead of setting out on my own… if I hadn't met that scientist…?"

Hawke felt a hand on her arm.

"Well as it is, you did and things are the way they are," Robin handed her a cup of tea, "And it seems that there are many traces of the long awaited Dark Angel."

Hawke took a sip of her tea and felt the cup warming her fingers.

_What happened in the past made me who I am today, _she reminded herself.

"By the way," Robin went on, "Did I tell you what the Skypieans thought about you?"

Hawke blinked and looked over at the archeologist.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

Robin smiled.

"So many things happened, I forgot to tell you," she said, "But the Shandians had their own version of the prophecy, it seems."

Hawke's eyes widened as Robin continued.

"When I was shown the poneglyph held in the golden belfry, the Shandian chief asked me about you," the archeologist was looking out at the waves, "He asked if you had devil fruit powers like our captain, and when I told him that those wings were your own he was elated and said that the legends had held true and that their long war was finally over."

Hawke took another sip and stood quietly as the sun began to set and the sky turned bright orange.

"The legend was that the end of the warrior Calgara's vigil would be heralded by the ringing of the bell, but that the tolling of that bell could only come on the wings of a raven. Of course, the Shandians had no way of knowing what a raven looked like and relied on the descriptions of the bird given to them by sailors from the Blue Sea. It seems that when Wiper saw your black wings, he declared that the raven had come. After that, Luffy rang the bell."

Hawke felt Robin's eyes fall on her as they both stood in silence.

"Another prophecy that I'm supposed to be a part of…" the scout muttered and finished her tea, "At least now I know why Wiper kept staring and calling me Raven."

"Well if it refers to you or not," Robin said, seeing the younger woman's confusion, "It doesn't matter because it's over."

Hawke looked up, giving the archeologist a half smile.

"Yeah," she sighed.

Then she reached into her jacket and took out the letter.

"I have something I forgot to tell you too," she said, handing Robin the piece of parchment.

She told the archeologist what she had learned in Water 7.

Robin raised her eyebrow as she began to read.

"And I assume that the bird we met was Salem's companion?" she asked.

Hawke nodded, then she noticed that Robin had a shocked look on her face.

"What's wrong?" the scout asked worriedly.

The archeologist raised her eyes from the letter, the look of shock disappearing.

"You don't know what he was searching for?" she asked, quite serious.

Hawke blinked and shook her head.

"But he says that there was someone on Fishman Island who could see into the future and he was going to see her," she stuttered, "So I was hoping to find that person and ask her."

Robin gave Hawke a serious stare for a few moments, then she lowered her eyes again.

"Yes," the arcgeologist stated, giving back the letter "I think that would be best."

Hawke smiled and nodded.

Suddenly the kitchen door burst open and Sanji came spinning out.

"Nami-san! Robin-chan! Hawke-san!" he swooned, "Supper is ready for you!"

Robin took Hawke's empty cup from her hand.

"Shall we go in?" she asked.

"Sure," Hawke nodded.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

After dinner the crew retired to their rooms for the night. But Hawke was having trouble sleeping.

She tossed and turned for a while before quietly sitting up and putting on her slippers. She looked over her shoulder at the other two women sleeping soundly in the bed next to her. Nami had her arm stretched over onto Hawke's pillow and her other lay on top of her forehead. Robin was lying quietly on her back, one hand on her chest, the other gracefully on the blanket by her side.

Hawke sighed and stood up, quietly leaving the room.

She came out onto the deck and took off her slippers, feeling the grass between her toes, and looked up to the crow's nest. Usopp was supposed to be on watch tonight, but Hawke heard his faint snores floating down from the basket.

She smiled and went over to the rail.

_So there was another prophecy about me…_ she sighed as she looked down into the dark water.

Hawke appreciated the fact that Robin had told her about the Skypiean legend. But now that she knew about it, she felt a little… lost.

She had accepted that she was mostly likely the Dark Angel and therefore had some huge destiny ahead of her whether she liked it or not. And she was pretty close to truly believing that her father had been a human form of the Spirit of the Sky…

But she felt like she was just an object that was being led through life by someone else's hand. Just a puppet that had to show up in a certain place at a certain time and then leave and show up at another. If she was _meant_ to do all these things, then how could she have a choice in her actions?

"Is this who I am?" she whispered, "An idol that gets paraded around in front of people to give them hope? What can I do? How am I supposed to bring peace and find the True History? Do I even want to?"

A tear slipped down her cheek and she brushed it away.

_Thinking like this won't help you with anything,_ she told herself, _what did Zoro say?...just go with it…_

Suddenly, she heared a soft click behind her and stiffened. She turned to see who had come out on deck.

"Oh, Zoro," she said, suddenly nervous, "You can't sleep either?"

_Speak of the devil_, she thought.

The swordsman joined her at the rail.

"Nah," he grunted, "I thought I heard someone out here, so I came out to see who it was."

He glanced at her and frowned.

Hawke shifted from foot to foot.

"What?" she asked.

Zoro's frown depend.

"You've been crying," he muttered.

Hawke quickly averted her eyes and turned her back to him.

"I just got something in my eye," she stammered.

There was a few moments of silence.

Hawke felt her resovle dissipating.

"I just feel like I have no control over my life…" she confessed, "It seems like what I'm supposed to do was layed out before I was even born…"

She heard Zoro move around behind her, but she stayed facing away, not wanting him to see her eyes, and blinked away her tears.

"I told you before," he grunted, "Don't think about stuff like that… just roll with the punches. If there is such a thing as fate, then everything'll work out in the end."

Hawke felt herself calm down as she listened to the swordsman's advice.

His voice had a soothing affect on her, wiping her confusion away and replacing it with a content feeling.

"Why didn't you wake me up?" the swordsman snapped quietly.

Hawke felt a smile flit across her face.

_Zoro still wants me to go see him when I feel sad,_ she thought, blushing.

"I-I…" she whispered, "I didn't want to bother the others."

Zoro grunted in response.

They stood in silence for a few moments.

"Hey, Zoro," Hawke said quietly, "What were you going ask me back when we were leaving Water 7?"

There was a tense silence.

She could hear his feet shuffling on the grass.

She suddenly stiffened as she felt hands on her waist and warm breath on the top of her head.

Hawke's heart thumped hard against her ribs as Zoro's chest pressed against her back.

"I was going to ask if I could so this…" he stammered nervously.

Hawke wasn't sure what to say. Her throat was constricting and her mind was blank.

"O-oh," she stuttered.

She could feel the heat coming off her face and hear the blood rushing in her ears.

"I-is this okay?" Zoro asked nervously.

Hawke's chest tingled as she felt his breath on her ear.

"Yes," she whispered, leaning back slightly, further into the swordsman's chest.

She heard, and felt, him let out a sigh of relief and smiled.

_He wants to hold me_… she thought, her heart racing.

"Z- Zoro?" Hawke asked hesitantly, feeling a knot forming in her stomach.

"Mmm?" he grunted.

Hawke took a breath.

"Are we friends?" she asked, her words tumbling out of her mouth as fast as they could.

She felt the warmth and hands retract quickly and she turned around to face the swordsman.

"What?" Zoro was looking at her with a confused expression.

"I mean-," Hawke stuttered, fidgeting with the hem of her tank top, "I mean… are we _just_ friends?"

Her eyes widened and she looked down at the grass.

_I actually said it!_ she thought, horrified, _this could ruin everything!_

Zoro was standing in front of her in silence, but Hawke couldn't bring herself to meet the swordsman's gaze. She kept her eyes facing the deck. Her blood pounding in her ears.

_But he likes me too right?_ she thought frantically, _he just had his arms around me didn't he?!_

The silence seemed to drag on for enternity.

_I've ruined everything…_ Hawke felt her shoulders start shaking.

…

…

…

"Aren't we more?" Zoro's gruff voice broke the silence.

Hawke's eyes widened and she looked up.

He was staring at her nervously, his fists clenched at his sides and his eyes clouded with confusion.

_He's just as scared as I am_, she realized, _could that mean…?_

A smile spread across her face and she could feel the warm sensation in her chest again, the knot was beginning to disappear.

She took a nervous step forward, gaining a little more courage.

"You are to me…" she whispered, "More, I mean…"

The look of fear left Zoro's face as she said those words and was replaced with relief.

He lifted his arms up and held them out to her.

Hawke let out a little laugh and stepped forward.

She sighed as she felt his arms close around her waist, securing her in a tight grip.

"You're more to me too," Zoro said quietly, his chin resting on her shoulder, "You have been from the beginning."

Hawke smiled and closed her eyes.

"I'm so happy… Zoro…" she sighed.

She had known that Zoro was the one who always made her feel better, even if he didn't know that he did. He was the one she always told how she was really feeling, the stuff she couldn't tell Luffy or Robin. But she hadn't known just how much she'd wanted to be held in his arms until now.

Happiness filled her chest and she let out a giggle.

"I feel better now," she smiled into Zoro's neck.

The swordsman held her for a long time.

"It feels strange," he muttered, his chin back on her shoulder.

"What does?" Hawke asked quietly.

"Knowing that you feel the same way," Zoro mumbled, "But it doesn't feel different at all…"

Hawke smiled and gently pushed herself off his chest.

"Why would it feel different?" she asked, "If we've felt this way the whole time, then why would anything change?"

She saw the hint of turmoil in Zoro's eyes disappear.

He smiled, and then a yawn escaped his lips.

Hawke laughed.

"I guess we should both get to bed," she said, stepping out of Zoro's embrace.

"Yeah," the swordsman smiled warmly at her.

Her heart fluttered and she blushed.

"Well," she stammered, "I'll see you in the morning then."

Zoro nodded and turned to leave. Then he spun around and pulled her close again.

Hawke let out a little gasp as he held his face inches from hers, she could see some indecision and fear in Zoro's eyes.

_Is he going to kiss me?!_ she thought, half eagerly, half nervously.

She stayed frozen and Zoro's face came closer to hers. Her heartbeat resounding loudly in her ears.

Zoro seemed to be deliberating with himself. He had stopped just centimeters from her face, their noses were almost touching. But then he turned his head slightly, pressing his lips gently against her cheek.

Hawke felt a warm rush pass through her cheek and down her body as Zoro stepped back.

"Goodnight," he muttered, his cheeks bright red.

Then he turned quickly and entered the ship.

Hawke stood there, frozen in place.

But her heart soared and she did a happy little dance.

Before returning to her own bed, Hawke went into a store room and took out a blanket. Then she went back out and flew up to the crow's nest and draped it over Usopp. The sniper had been snoring away the whole time.

Hawke smiled as she flew back down to the deck. Her heart was full of happiness and she felt like she was walking on clouds.

_Zoro likes me back!_

Hawke fell back onto the bed beside Nami with a happy sigh. Then she curled up onto her side.

She let out a happy giggle and drifted off to sleep.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Robin opened her eyes as she heard Hawke's breath slow to a steady rate.

_So they've finally acknowledged each others feelings,_ the archeologist smiled as she shifted onto her side.

It would be interesting to see how those two handled their newly admitted love in the near future. Robin looked forward to watching how things would unfold.

Then a serious look passed over her face.

_But that Salem could be a dangerous man_, she thought, her mind recalling her previous boss, _we don't know what his intentions were. He could be a man like Crocodile…I'm glad Hawke hasn't figured out what he was researching yet, although I'm surprised she hasn't._

Robin closed her eyes again as she rested her head on her pillow.

Nami moved her leg out in her sleep and it touched the back of the archeologist's calf.

Robin smiled as she felt the warmth of the two bodies laying beside her.

She decided not to tell Hawke what Salem had been searching for.

_It's too dangerous right now_, she thought as she drifted off to sleep, _we need to learn more before we take any action._

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Zoro climbed into his hanging bunk and smirked at the ceiling.

_Nothing needs to change_, he thought contentedly.

This made him very happy.

The reason he had not asked Hawke before was the fear that she would treat him differently, whether she returned his feelings or not.

But she had said that nothing was going to change because they had been treating each other the way they normally would the whole time.

The swordsman let out a soft sigh. He hadn't felt this alive in a long time.

Something had shifted in his world. Something had fallen into place.

His heart was still beating against his ribs.

He felt a little ashamed at not kissing Hawke "properly", but he had lost his nerve at the last second. He wasn't used to all these emotions yet.

The swordsman closed his eyes and let his mind wander where it wanted.

His thoughts drifted back to earlier that day, when they'd been training together. He smiled as he recalled how much stonger she had become.

_She's already really good at manouvering through the air,_ he thought,_ she should definitely keep up those skills._

He had watched her from the window of the training room as she had flown around the ship, by herself and then with both Luffy and Chopper.

Zoro lips twitched as he remembered Hawke diving and twirling through the air, her body looking so fragile as it spun around.

And he had finally been able to hold that body, to hold _her_. She had let him closer, she had let him in. And in return, he had opened up to her.

He could still smell the soft coconut scent of her hair.

Zoro smirked as he felt his heart slowing down.

He would work even harder now. He had to become the greatest swordsman in the world as soon as he was able, he had to protect what he loved.

He rolled over and prepared himself to sleep.

"Oi, Zoro!" he heard a sudden whisper below him.

Cracking an eye open, he recognized the voice of his captain.

"Why are you awake?" Zoro grunted in annoyance.

"What were you doing out there?" the captain asked, "I thought I heard Hawke."

Zoro stiffened, but he nodded.

"Yeah," he grunted, "She was already out there. She couldn't sleep."

"Oh," Luffy said thoughtfully.

There was a pause.

The swordsman let his eyes relax again.

"Did she go back to bed?" the captain asked.

Zoro grimaced and stuck his head out over the bed, looking down.

"Yeah, she did," he snapped, "And I would like to also!"

But Luffy couldn't be dettered.

"Something's bothering her," the rubberman whined, stretching his head up to make it level with the swordsman, "She won't tell me."

Zoro raised his eyebrow.

"Eh?" he rolled over, showing Luffy his back, "She probably just doesn't want you to worry."

"But I am…"

Zoro stiffened and slowly rolled back over.

Luffy's face was unusually unhappy.

Zoro sat up with a grunt.

"Listen," he said, "I know she's your sister, so it makes sense that you worry about her. But remember that she's a part of this crew. We're all going to protect each other."

Luffy's head bobbed from side to side.

"Is it about the mystery prophecy?" he asked.

Zoro glared at him.

"Were you even listening to me?!" he snapped, but then he calmed down, "Yes, she doesn't like the idea of not being able to make her own choices because of the prophecy."

The captain's forehead wrinkled as he concentrated.

"When I visited her last night," he frowned, "She was crying in her sleep…I didn't tell her, though."

Zoro started.

_Hawke is really upset about this_, he thought.

"Hey, Zoro," Luffy said, waving his head in front of the swordsman, "Hawke likes you-"

The swordsman flinched.

"- so can you make sure she doesn't cry as much?"

_Luffy can notice those types of things?!_ Zoro couldn't believe what he'd just heard.

"I can make her laugh and smile," the captain just kept on talking, "But I can't get her to stop crying. Maybe you can."

Zoro stared dumbly at Luffy, but he managed to nod his head.

"Alright!" Luffy smiled, "I'm going to bed now."

His head disappeared and Zoro almost instantly heard snores.

The swordsman stared into space, in shock, for a few moments. Then he felt himself relax.

_Luffy's alright as an older brother_, he smirked as he lay back down,_ I never knew just how much he worried about her._


	38. Chapter 38: A Look Into the Past

**Chapter 38**

**A Look Into the Past**

The next morning dawned clear, but cold.

Hawke shivered as she left the warmth of the covers and headed for the kitchen.

"Good morning, Sanji," she yawned as she opened the door and the aroma of bacon flowed over her.

"You look lovely as the morning dew, Hawke-swan!" swooned the cook as he laid platters of eggs and hash browns onto the table alongside the bacon, "Please eat your fill."

Hawke smiled and eagerly started on her breakfast.

Robin had gotten up before the others and was already almost done her plate.

"Did you have a pleasant night, Hawke?" the archeologist sent a knowing glance down the table.

The scout felt the colour rise in her cheeks as she recalled what happened between her and Zoro during the night.

"I suppose so," she said quietly.

_But how does Robin know?_ She thought, eyeing the archeologist suspiciously.

Then she turned her gaze back to her meal.

_Then again, Robin does always seem to know everything._

The door suddenly burst open and Luffy bounded in, making Hawke almost choke on the mouthful she had been swallowing.

"Oi, Sanji!" the captain shouted, "Why didn't you say breakfast was ready!?"

"Just eat," the cook grunted as he quickly replenished the plates, "And leave some for Nami-san, she hasn't gotten up yet."

As he said that, the navigator entered the kitchen.

"Don't eat my food, Luffy!" she snapped as she sat down.

Hawke smiled as Luffy immediately started stuffing his face, noting that he seemed to be giving Nami's plate a wide berth.

The rest of the boys quickly followed the captain into the kitchen and began to dig in. Zoro shot Hawke a small smile as he sat down across from her, which Hawke returned.

She felt the warm sensation in her chest, which had started last night when she'd gone to bed, and had continued as she'd gotten up this morning. It was the warmth of relief and happiness that her feelings were returned by the one they were directed at.

Her gaze lingered on the swordsman as he filled his plate with bacon and eggs.

_He seems to be in a good mood,_ she thought, feeling her own mood lighten.

Hawke smiled at her empty plate before standing and handing it to Sanji's outstretched hand.

"Is there anything that needs doing this morning?" she turned to Nami.

The navigator thought for a moment.

"No," she said, shaking her head, "The weather seems to be relatively steady for now, so we just need to sail forward."

Hawke nodded.

"I think I'll take it easy today," she groaned as she stretched her arms above her head, "It's about time I explored the rest of the Sunny!"

"You can explore the kitchen any time you want, Hawke-chan!" swooned Sanji, opening the door for her and leaning in close to her ear, "I'll make sure you're never bored."

Hawke stiffened and took a step back. She heard the scrape of a chair on wood behind her and then a clinking noise.

_That was Zoro's swords_, Hawke thought, feeling her cheeks flush.

"Thanks for the offer, Sanji," she said quickly, "But I've already seen plenty of the kitchen. I was thinking more the library…"

Sanji was staring, wide-eyed, over her shoulder, but he brought his eyes back to Hawke and bowed his head.

"Of course, Hawke-san," he said in a lower, less flamboyant voice.

He stood back and held open the door.

Hawke nodded and looked over her shoulder as she left the kitchen.

Zoro was still standing with his hand on his swords.

Hawke gave him a small smile as she stepped out of view.

_I guess he wanted to let Sanji know to be more careful,_ she thought, feeling the warm sensation in her chest grow.

She let out another groan as she became aware of the brisk morning air.

Her muscles were more than a little sore from her training and flying yesterday. She could feel them protesting against the cold.

She scurried back to the girl's room and put on a long sleeved shirt under her jacket and a pair of jeans before making her way down to the library.

"I haven't spent much time in here," she muttered as she looked up at the many shelves of books, then out to the aquarium.

She sat down and watched a small school of purple and red fish swim around through the seaweed.

She smiled as she saw some of the smaller fish flitting in and out of the plants as two larger ones hovered above them.

"Those must be their parents," she sighed as one of the large ones herded the little ones back into the seaweeds as a larger, hungry looking fish swam by.

_Their parents…,_ Hawke thought.

She chewed on her lip as her mind began turning towards herself and her past.

Lately, she had found herself getting lost in her own thoughts more than usual. Sure she had a lot to think about with the prophecy and her future, and now she had more feelings and thoughts about Zoro to keep her busy. But at this moment, she found an old ache rising to the surface.

"I guess it wouldn't be totally impossible for a man to be possessed by a spirit," she muttered, "I mean, I still have a human father and mother…I wonder who they are…"

She often wondered about her parents, and if they were still alive, living somewhere in the world.

When she was younger, and once she had found out that Luffy wasn't her brother by blood, she would get angry that no one had come looking for her. But as she grew older, she realized that she was doing fine with Makino, Garp, and Shanks as her mentors and that they were the ones who had been there for her, not her biological parents.

Hawke had grown up loving Makino like an older sister. She would tell the barlady her troubles and would get advice in return, but the opposite was also true. Makino had treated her with respect as well as love. Now that she thought back to it, it was a bit odd that she never even considered Makino to be her mother. The thought had never crossed her young mind…

And Shanks was like a funny uncle. The one that would come and visit every now and then and start a party before disappearing out into the ocean. He was the one who had gotten her into knife throwing.

Of the three adults, Garp had been the one she felt to be what he actually was: her grandfather. Sure, they weren't blood related, but you could never tell by the way he knew her and treated her. And, in fact, Hawke hadn't believed him at first when he had told her that she and Luffy weren't actually brother and sister and that he wasn't her real grandfather.

Hawke smiled at the memory.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

She had been seven at that time. Garp had some time off from his duties with the navy and he had come to see how his grandchildren were doing.

Hawke and Luffy had been playing in the puddles that had formed during a rainstorm overnight and she ran in to see Garp with muddy feet and hands. Luffy had taken off in the other direction.

"Oi, Hawke!" the Vice-Admiral boomed, bending down to look at her, "What are you doing covered in mud, young lady?"

Hawke smiled and reached her little hands up to her grandfather.

"Look!" she cried happily, "Grampa's back!"

Garp gave her a wide grin and picked her up, holding her out in front of him.

"And what have you been doing while your Grandpa's been away?" he asked her.

Hawke's eyes widened as she smiled.

"Looking for treasure!" she giggled, "Luffy said he knows where it is!"

Garp's expression immediately soured.

"Treasure?" he growled, "What's that stupid brother of yours been putting in your head?"

Hawke giggled again. She found her grandfather's facial expressions quite funny.

"Luffy said he's gunna let me sail with him," she said, reaching out her hands and playing with Garps mustache, "Uncle Shanks gave him his hat and said he'd be a great pirate! We train every day!"

Garp's eyes flashed in anger, but Hawke was oblivious to this as the bristles on his face were getting her full attention. This caused her to be upset when Garp lowered her back to the ground.

"Wait, Grampa," she whined, lifting her arms, "I want to stay up."

"You have to stay down for now, young lady," Garp said, "Hey, Makino!"

The barlady quickly came over to them.

Hawke smiled and ran over to hug Makino's skirt.

"Big Sis!" she giggled, "Grampa's face is prickly feeling!"

Makino smiled down at her and began washing the dirt off her hands.

"Of course," her soft voice was in stark contrast to Garps booming one, "Your grandfather is a very busy man, he doesn't have time to shave sometimes."

"Oh," Hawke gazed up in wonder at her very busy grampa.

"Makino!" Garp boomed again, "Stop letting Luffy and Hawke run around wild. They're hanging out with that Red Hair too much. Nothing good can come of it."

"I'm sorry, Garp-san," Makino said, "But I have to take care of the tavern. I can't watch them all the time. And it's good for them. They're learning new skills," she bent down so her face was level with Hawke's, "Why don't you show your grandfather what Shanks taught you."

Hawke's eyes lit up and she nodded.

"Okay," she said and quickly ran around the bar, taking the knives from every table.

She could hear Garp and Makino talking, but she was focused on collecting her knives and didn't pay attention to them. She was going to show her grampa what she could do!

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

"I'm going to take Luffy up to live with Dandan," Garp muttered to Makino, "He's too distracted down here and gets into too much trouble."

"What?" the barlady's eyes widened, "But what about Hawke? Are you going to take her too?"

The Vice-Admiral shook his head.

"She's going to stay here, with you," he said, crossing his arms, "I need you to watch over her and make sure she keeps up with her training."

He paused.

"Maybe let her help you out here," he gestured around the bar, "She'd be good at serving and she needs to start working."

Makino glanced at the little girl running around the tables.

"But Garp-san," she said, "They've never been separated…"

"This will make them stronger," Garp snapped, "They can't learn to depend on each other too much… if things turn out for the worst, she's the only one with no ties to … important people."

Makino frowned.

"You still haven't told her," she said, raising her finger and pointing at Garp, "She's old enough to know. If you wait any longer, it could cause her to take it the wrong way."

"Yeah, yeah," the marine waved his hand at Makino, "I'll tell her."

They paused and watched Hawke, who was still gathering up cutlery from the tables. It was taking her a long time due to her small arms, which couldn't handle more than three utensils at a time.

"So what's she doing?" Garp grunted.

"Shanks seems to have discovered what her gift is," Makino smiled, "She's very talented."

Garp grinned.

"Well that's to be expected!" he laughed, "She's my granddaughter after all."

Makino raised her eyebrow but smiled.

"Garp," she said, "You should have been the one to teach her. Why don't you treat her the same as you treat Luffy. She's noticed, you know."

The Vice-Admiral frowned.

"I don't do it on purpose," he growled, "I always mean to train her."

He cast a glance back towards Hawke. She had cleared all but a few of the tables of their cutlery.

"I guess knowing that she might have her own parents out there somewhere," he said, "It makes me feel like I don't have the right to tell her what her future is. Not like with Luffy or Ace… And I don't have the right to throw her around… plus she's adorable, I wish I had had all granddaughters."

Makino was staring at him with wide eyes. It wasn't often that he got this serious when talking to her.

"Well, that just shows you care for her just as much those boys," the barlady smiled.

Just then, Hawke came waddling back to them, her arms full of knives.

"Knives?!" Garp snapped, "What is she doing?!"

"Just watch," Makino reassured the Vice-Admiral, "She's really good."

Hawke put the knives down on the table beside Makino and then squeezed past her grandfather's huge figure and closed the door of the bar. On the wall behind the door hung a roughly coloured bull's eye. Hawke ran back to the table and took up two knives.

"Watch out Grampa!" she said, "You're in the way."

Garp chuckled and stepped aside.

"This is what Uncle Shanks taught me," Hawke said, raising her arm.

She took a moment to pause before throwing her first knife. It spun through the air and landed with a thud, right in the center of the bull's eye.

Hawke quickly launched the rest of her pile of knives, all of them landing within centimeters of the red dot.

Garp let out a booming laugh as she threw her last knife.

"What a marvelous talent you have!" he roared, "I'd expect nothing less from my granddaughter! You'll make a fine marine!"

He patted Hawke on the head, making her beam with pride.

"And where's that good for nothing grandson of mine?" Garp asked, looking around, "He should come say hello to his grandfather!"

Hawke reached up and took Garp's big hand in her two little ones.

"Luffy ran away," she tugged on his hand, "He said that you'd hit him again because he's going to be a pirate."

"Damn right I am!" Garp shouted, "I'll beat him until he realizes that he's going to be a marine!"

And with that he stormed out of the tavern.

Hawke stood watching after him, a confused expression on her face.

"Is Grampa Garp mad at Luffy?" she turned and asked Makino.

The barlady gave her a soft smile.

"No," she replied, "He's just worried about Luffy, that's all."

Hawke's brow furrowed as she tried to understand.

"Grampa shouldn't worry," she said finally, "I'll take care of Luffy!"

Makino's eyes widened, then she smiled and picked Hawke up and gave her a warm hug.

"I know you will," the barlady whispered, "You make sure Luffy always gets out of trouble."

Hawke played with Makino's tresses.

"You have pretty hair, Big Sis," she laughed.

Makino smiled and put Hawke back onto the ground.

"Now why don't you go find your brother and grandfather," she said, "Bring them back here and we'll have dinner."

"Okay," Hawke smiled as she ran out the door.

She searched around the streets of Fuusha village, but it took her a while to find the two. And when she did, they were in an all out battle at the edge of the town.

"Luffy! Grampa!" Hawke called as she ran up to them, "Makino said to come back for dinner."

Garp had Luffy in a headlock, which her brother was desparately trying to get out of by biting their grandfather's arm.

"What do you think you're doing?!" Garp shouted, "There's no way I'll let you become a pirate! You're going to be a marine like your sister!"

"No way!" Luffy gasped for air, "I'm going to become a pirate like Shanks, and then Hawke's going to come sail on my crew!"

"Ha!" Garp boomed, "You've been hanging around Red Hair too much! I forbid you to see him! That goes for you too Hawke!"

Hawke let out a little gasp.

"Why, Grampa?" she asked, "I like Uncle Shanks."

"Shanks saved my life!" Luffy managed to stretch himself out of Garp's grasp and quickly ran over to stand with Hawke, "I promised him I'd return his hat once I become a great pirate!"

He waved the straw hat in the air before putting it back on his head.

"That's nonsense!" shouted Garp, "Stop putting thoughts like that into Hawke's head! She's going to become a marine!"

Hawke felt her fist clench.

"But I want to stay with Luffy!" she suddenly declared.

Garp froze.

Hawke felt suddenly nervous. She shuffled her feet and looked down at the ground.

"I don't really care what I become, a marine or a pirate," she mumbled, "As long as I get to stay with my brother."

She reached out and grabbed Luffy's hand.

He looked over and gave her a happy grin.

Hawke looked up and saw that Garp had a serious look on his face.

"Grampa?" she asked nervously.

The Vice-Admiral crossed his arms, seeming to have decided something.

"Luffy!" he boomed.

Hawke saw Luffy stiffen as he stood beside her.

"Get your stuff ready. You're leaving this village tomorrow!"

"Eh?" Luffy shouted, "What do you mean I'm leaving?! No way!"

Garp scowled and threw a punch that landed right on Luffys head.

"Don't argue with your grandfather!" he shouted, "What I say is final! You're going to go live with a friend of mine, somewhere where you won't be influenced by pirates anymore!"

Hawke winced as Luffy cried out in pain.

"Please don't hurt him, Grampa," she pleaded, running over to pull on Garp's pant leg, "I don't want to leave either."

Garp looked down at her.

"You're not leaving, Hawke," he said gruffly, "You're staying here, with Makino."

Hawke blinked.

"What?" she asked, not understanding, "You mean… I can't go with Luffy?"

"That's right," Garp growled, "I'm separating you two. You won't be able to focus on your training if you're always playing around."

Hawke stood silent.

There hadn't been a day, not one day, that she hadn't been with Luffy. They had grown up together, played together, eaten and slept together every day since they'd been born. She couldn't imagine the possibility of living without Luffy being there. Her young mind couldn't grasp this concept and so it resorted to the only way it could figure out how to express itself.

"No!" Hawke screamed, tears falling down her face, "No! I don't want Luffy to go away! If he's going somewhere then take me too! I want to stay with Luffy!"

She yanked at the pantleg, still clutched in her hand.

"Yeah!" shouted Luffy, "I'm not going anywhere without Hawke!"

"Be quiet, both of you!" Garp shouted, his voice almost menacing.

Hawke was shocked out of her little tempertantrum.

"This is for both of your sakes," Garp continued, "I can't expect you to understand the reasons why, but this is the way it has to be."

He reached down and pulled his clothing out of Hawke's weak grasp.

"Now," he said, "Let's go back and have supper."

The walk back to the bar and the meal that followed were accompanied by Luffy's loud complaints and Garp's angry retorts, but Hawke remained silent.

She still couldn't understand why her grandfather was taking her brother away from her.

Even when Luffy and Garp came to blows once again, instead of interrupting like she normally would, she stood up and went to sit out on the steps of the bar.

"Look!" Hawke heard Luffy shouting as the door closed behind her, "You've made Hawke sad! I'll kick your ass!"

"Don't talk to your grandfather like that!" roared Garp.

The thumps and crashes shook the whole building and Hawke covered her ears to block them out.

"I don't want Luffy to go away…" she whimpered and started to cry again, "We've always been together! He's my brother!"

The sound of her sobs covered up the sudden silence from within the bar. And Hawke didn't notice when the door opened behind her. She was startled when Garp sat down heavily beside her.

"I'm sorry, Grampa," she sniffled, wiping her cheeks and nose with a handkerchief that Makino had given her.

"There's no reason for you to be sorry," her grandfather lifted a huge hand and put in on her shoulder, "You're a wonderful young lady."

There was a pause as Hawke continued to sniffle.

"You really love Luffy, don't you," Garp chuckled.

Hawke looked up in surprise.

"Of course, Grampa!" she said, "He's my brother."

Garp looked down at her in silence.

"What do you think a brother is?" he asked, removing his hand and watching the sun set, "What do you think a grandfather is?"

Hawke was confused by the question and didn't know how to answer.

"Umm," she brought her finger to her chin as she thought about it, "Well they're family aren't they? There's a grampa and grandma, and then a mother and father, and then brothers and sisters."

Garp let out another chuckle.

"So you think that family is related by blood…" he trailed off.

"Blood?" Hawke was thoroughly confused now, "I don't know about that, blood is icky."

This time Garp let out a booming laugh.

"That's not what blood relation means," he chuckled, "It means that you share a mother and father with someone else. Like how my son is Luffy's father, so that makes me his grandfather. That's blood relation."

Hawke frowned up at her grandfather.

"What about me?" she asked, "You forgot me..."

Garp clasped his hands together and looked ahead, avoiding her gaze.

"Do you think that you and Luffy share the same parents?" he asked.

Hawke just stayed silent. She had never really thought about that stuff. Sure, the other kids in the village all had fathers and mothers, but she and Luffy never had… they always stayed with Makino…

"You and Luffy are not blood related," Garp said tersely, "You are not real siblings… and I am not your real grandfather."

Being seven, most of this conversation was going right over Hawke's head. But those last words rang loud and clear in her young mind.

"What are you saying, Grampa?!" she cried, standing up, "What do you mean Luffy's not my real brother?! Of course he is! And you're my Grampa too!"

Her little fists shook as she clenched them.

"I don't care about that blood stuff!" she huffed, "Luffy's my brother and you're my grampa and that's how it is!"

She sat back down with a thump and crossed her arms, pouting.

When she heard another chuckle, she turned and frowned at Garp.

"Don't be mad, Hawke," the Vice-Admiral laughed, "Of course I'm your grandfather! And of course Luffy's your brother. I just wanted you to understand that you don't share blood lines. When you get older, that might be something important to know."

Hawke smiled in relief and jumped up to hug her grandfather.

"Yay! Grampa!" she cried, "I love you!"

She felt his huge arms squeeze her tight.

"I love you too," his voice rumbled.

"Wait, Grampa!" Hawke gasped, laughing, "I can't breathe!"

Garp loosened his grip and pushed her up onto his shoulder.

"Luffy still has to leave, though," he said quietly.

"But-!" Hawke began protesting, grabbing handfuls of Garp's short hair.

"No buts!" the Vice-Admiral stated, slamming his fist onto the porch, "This is for both of you sakes."

"Our sakes?" Hawke asked, "What does that mean?"

"It's when adults can see something that is much bigger than what you little ones can see," Garp muttered, "We can plan for the future accordingly. And you have to listen, even if you don't understand."

Hawke frowned at the sunset.

"I don't understand," she whimpered again, on the verge of tears again, "We train everyday! We're getting stronger like you want us to, Grampa. Why can't we just stay together?… I've never been without Luffy."

There was a pause and she felt Garp stiffen under her.

"You'll be okay," he finally growled, "You've trained as much as you can together. But in order to get stronger, you need to be on your own for a while."

He turned his head to look at her.

"What would happen if you grew up with Luffy the entire time, but when you enter the marines they post you at different headquarters? If that happened and you were dependent on Luffy, you'd be weaker! You have to learn to be the strongest you can be all by yourself, without depending on anyone. That's the only way that you'll be able to help and protect the people you love."

Hawke listened carefully to those words. They engraved themselves into her mind.

"So…" she said slowly, trying to figure out what she felt, "If I want to make sure I can get Luffy out of trouble… I need to make sure I can fight without him?"

Garp gave her a wide smile and nodded.

"That's it!" he laughed.

Hawke let out a little gasp.

"Then _you_ help me get stronger!" she said, bouncing up and down on Garp's shoulder, "Train me like you train Luffy!"

But Garp shook his head.

"I've told you before," he said, "The reason I can be so rough with Luffy is because he ate that damn devil fruit. His body is much more resilient than yours is. If you and I were to fight, you would get hurt pretty badly."

Hawke frowned.

"But you never worry about Luffy getting hurt!" she huffed, "Is this because I'm a girl?"

Garp let out a chuckle.

"Not exactly," he said, reaching up and ruffling her hair, "But I could never bring myself to put a bruise on my sweet little granddaughter's face. I'll leave that for your commanding officers and your marine training."

"Grampa!" Hawke giggled, "You can't show me mercy! You're a marine Vice-Animal!"

Garp's laugh echoed through the village.

"Its Vice-_Admiral_," he boomed, "Not animal! You sound like that stupid brother of yours."

"Hey!" a sudden voice shouted from behind them, "Don't call me stupid!"

Luffy jumped up onto Garp's back and began trying to punch it.

Hawke laughed.

"You still haven't gotten used to your devil fruit powers," she giggled, "Your fist is wobbling all over!"

"Shut up!" snapped Luffy as he fell backwards.

Hawke's laughter intensified at this and she fell off of Garp's shoulder and onto the porch.

She lay there for a moment in silence before bursting out in laughter once more.

Luffy and Garp joined in and the trio didn't stop until Makino came out to see what was going on.

"It's late," the barlady took Luffy and Hawke's hands and lifted them up, "Let's get ready for bed."

Hawke waved goodbye to her grandfather as they went up to the room above the bar.

The room was large enough to fit two beds into, along with two wardrobes and a vanity mirror.

Hawke quickly changed into her nightgown and brushed her teeth. Then the siblings jumped into their bed, which was shared, the other belonging to Makino.

The lights were turned out and Makino returned down to the restaurant to continue serving the customers.

"Luffy?" Hawke reached out to find her brother's hand in the darkness, "Are you really leaving tomorrow?"

There was a huff.

"There's no way Grandpa can make me go!" he snapped as he squeezed her hand.

There was a pause.

"I think you should…" Hawke finally spoke.

"What?!" shouted Luffy, "Why?! You want us to be separated? You'll be all alone."

Hawke frowned at the black ceiling.

"I hate the thought of you not being here," she said, "But maybe we can get stronger this way… we can't get used to depending on each other all the time… And I won't be alone, I'll have Makino and Grampa...plus I'm not really your sister…you shouldn't be worrying about me like that anymore…"

She felt Luffy's hand clench hers tightly.

"Don't say that!" he snapped, "I heard what Gramps told you… But, like he said, you're still my little sister! And I'm still your big brother! Nothing can change that!"

Hawke smiled and let out a laugh.

"You know I'm older than you," she teased, "I'm not little."

"Only by two months," Luffy grumpily replied, "But you're still the little one because I'm taller!"

Hawke let out a giggle and her eyes found the stars shining down through the window.

"I'm going to miss you a lot," she whispered.

Luffy took a while to respond.

"Do you really think we can get stronger if we're apart?" he asked.

Hawke nodded, even though she knew he couldn't see her.

"I think so," she replied, "But I'm for sure going to find you and join your crew after I get stronger!"

Luffy laughed and pulled her over to him, giving her a big hug.

"I'm going to get so strong!" he laughed, "And then we can sail the seas and have awesome adventures with our own crew! Just like Shanks! We'll go all the way to the end of the Grand Line!"

"Promise?" Hawke whispered.

"Promise," Luffy stated.

Hawke smiled happily and felt herself drifting off to sleep.

"I love you, Luffy," she mumbled into the pillow.

"Me too," she heard his reply before falling asleep.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

The next morning, Hawke woke up to find that she was all alone.

"Luffy?!" she started and sat up, "Where are you?"

Her eyes fell onto a small object laying on the blankets.

She reached over and picked it up.

It was a piece of paper with a gold chain attached to it.

Hawke squinted at the letters messily scrawled onto the paper.

"Keep this as our promise to sail together to the end of the Grand Line," she mumbled.

Picking up the chain, she saw that it had a gold cross pendant hanging from it.

"Luffy…?" she whispered.

Then she jumped out of bed and tore down the stairs, bursting out into the restaurant.

It seemed to be mid-morning and there were already a few customers at the tables.

"Good morning, Hawke-san," one of the villagers waved at her, "Why are you still in your pajamas?"

But Hawke ignored him, looking around frantically.

"Where's Luffy?" she cried.

Makino quickly came over to her.

"Luffy left this morning," she said, "He said that you already said goodbye and then went back to sleep because you weren't feeling well. Are you okay?"

Hawke shook her head.

"He didn't wake me up!" she cried, tears forming in her eyes, "He never said goodbye! Where did he go?"

Makino frowned and gave her a sympathetic look.

"I can't say, Hawke," she said, "Garp-san said he was going far away."

Hawke's shoulders shook as she ran towards the doors.

"He didn't say goodbye!" she wailed, "He can't be gone!"

She burst through them and stood blinking in the sunlight. Making her way down the steps, she turned and ran towards the harbour, thinking that that's where Garp and Luffy had gone. But when she reached it, there was no one in sight.

"Luffy…" Hawke whimpered as she leaned against the dock rail, "Why didn't you wake me up?"

She sat down and cried into her arms.

She sat there in her pajamas, bawling, for a long time. Her cries eventually pettering down to whimpers.

"Now, now," she heard a voice, "Why are you so upset, little one?"

Hawke looked up to see who the speaker was, but there was no one around her.

"Huh?" she mumbled, wiping her eyes.

Then she heard a squawk.

"That's better!"

Hawke blinked and looked up. There was a gull sitting on top of the post beside her.

She stared up at the bird.

"Do you feel better now?" it asked her.

Hawke gasped and jumped up.

"Y-yes," she stammered.

"Well that's excellent then," the gull replied.

Hawke watched as it took off and soared away.

Before she could contemplate what had just happened, she heard footsteps coming up behind her.

"Its okay, Hawke," Makino's quiet voice spoke, "You'll see Luffy again. Right now you have to work on getting stronger, isn't that what your grandfather said?"

Hawke blinked and she took the barlady's hand and let herself be led back through the village.

_Luffy's already gone_, she thought, _I don't know how long it will be until I see him again. I need to get as strong as I can._

She looked up at Makino.

"But how do I get stronger?" she whimpered.

The barlady smiled down at her.

"Well you can start by helping me out around tavern," she said, "You'll need to learn how to help people. You'll be good at it since you have a nice smile. Just don't throw any knives around the customers. But first you need to get out of your pajamas."

Hawke let herself be cheered up by these words.

"Okay," she smiled as Makino led her through the doors.

_I'll see you when we're both stronger, Luffy._

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Hawke blinked as she pulled herself out of her memory.

She opened her eyes and found herself back in the present. The purple and red fish were staring at her through the glass of the aquarium.

"Wait!" she gasped at her reflection, "I could understand birds back then?!"

There was no mistaking her memory. That had actually happened! That gull had spoken to her and she had understood it!

_But that was years before I got my tattoo_! Hawke thought.

She leaned back against the couch she was sitting on and wracked through her memories of her life in Fuusha village.

And sure enough, she managed to recall a few more times that she had spoken to birds back then. Once when a sparrow had stolen one of Makino's cookies that had been cooling in the window and she'd convinced it to give it back. And another time when she had lost Luffy in the forest on the outskirts of the village and a crow had helped her find him and then helped them find their way back to the village.

_I didn't even think that was weird at the time_, she thought in amazement, _it was so normal that I didn't even remember it until now!_

"So I could understand birds before I got my tattoo," she muttered, "I guess I was born with that ability…," she let out a defeated sigh, "I guess I am a princess or something after all."

She felt her hand reach up and grab her necklace and she smiled.

_But I got much stronger in that time before I saw you again, right Luffy?_ she thought_, and I'm going to keep getting stronger so I can keep getting you out of trouble._

"You're a princess?" a voice came from behind her.

Hawke jumped and spun around to look at the door.

"Oh, it's you Franky," she smiled at the large-armed cyborg, "You surprised me."

He drew a comb through his hair.

"That's because I'm suuuper sneaky," he declared, holding a funny dance pose.

Hawke laughed.

"I guess you are," she smiled.

Franky sent her a smirk before coming over to stand beside her.

"So what was that you were saying about being a princess?" he asked, leaning down and giving her a sly look, "I didn't know that I was in the presence of royalty!"

Hawke felt her cheeks flush.

"It's nothing," she stammered, "I was just-," she stopped and sighed.

"It's a long story," she decided, "But it's not what you think it is, I'm not royalty or anything. Not to humans anyways."

"To humans?" Franky gave her a quizzical look.

Hawke became more flustered as she tried to think of a way to explain the meaning of her words without going into every detail. She brought her hand up to her cheek and bit her lip.

"Oi, Franky!" a sudden gruff voice rang out, "What are you doing to make her so upset?"

Hawke looked over to the door and smiled as she saw Zoro entering the library.

"I didn't do anything," Franky said after giving the swordsman a wave, "She was muttering to herself about being a princess and I just asked why. She got herself all worked up."

Zoro's face relaxed and he joined the other two by the couches.

"I- I just don't know how to explain it," Hawke mumbled, her cheeks becoming quite red as she pulled on her braid.

"Oh," the swordsman grunted, "You mean that you're the subject of a prophecy that fortells the revealing of the True History? Or the fact that you're the daughter of some spirit and can talk to birds and can fly?"

Hawke's jaw fell open as she listened to Zoro divulge everything she had been trying to say in a few simple sentences.

"Z-Zoro?!" she stammered, "Thank you… you made it sound so easy…"

But the swordsman silenced her by putting his hand on her shoulder and giving it a gentle squeeze.

"Everyone on this crew has their own pasts and their own secrets," he said, turning to Franky, "I have mine and I'm sure you have yours."

Franky nodded.

"Woah, I never knew you had so much going on," the cyborg looked down at Hawke.

She stood up, shaking her head and raising her hands.

"Its fine," she smiled, "It's just the way things are. How about I tell you the whole story later?"

Franky smirked and nodded.

Hawke quickly turned to Zoro.

"Is there something you wanted?" she asked, "You don't usually come down here, do you?"

The swordsman let out a little scoff, but then he nodded.

"Chopper said he needs your help with some medicine stuff," he said, "He's in his room being all happy."

Hawke smiled and stretched her arms.

"Alright," she said, "Tell him I'll be right there."

Zoro nodded and left the room.

Hawke waved to Franky and made to follow the swordsman, but she stopped as she put her hand on the door frame.

"Hey, Franky," she looked over her shoulder.

"Yeah?" the cyborg replied.

"You're sure this ship can sail to the end of the Grand Line?" she asked.

Franky scoffed.

"Just who do you think built this ship!?" he exclaimed, jumping up and striking another flashy pose, "Of course it can!"

Hawke gave him a wide smile.

"That's excellent," she said, "Because Luffy promised me that we'd sail there together!"

Franky grinned at her.

"He's your brother, right?" he asked.

Hawke nodded.

"Well, I think I can say, with my own brotherly instincts, that he'll make sure he keeps that promise," Franky said sagely.

Hawke gave him a warm smile.

"Of course he will," she said, turning to go find out what Chopper wanted.


	39. Chapter 39: Arrival on Lovely Island

**Chapter 39**

**Arrival on Lovely Island**

After helping Chopper rearrange and unpack his medical supplies, as well as make some backup ointments and antidotes, Hawke was finally free and emerged out on the deck.

She was met with the spectacle of Luffy trying to stuff a large shark into the aquarium hatch.

"What are they doing?!" she gaped as the shark was punched through the opening, "It'll eat all the other fish!"

But no sooner had the shark been pushed in, than Luffy and Usopp tore past her back towards the library.

"We caught it!" Luffy was shouting, "It's a big one!"

Hawke smiled and rolled her eyes.

"Either way," she muttered as she went over to the rail and looked out at the sea, "I'm sure Sanji can make something delicious out of a shark."

She blinked as she saw white specks appearing on the waves. Looking up she laughed and held out her hand.

"It's snowing!" she sighed, feeling the little cold crystals melting on her warm skin.

She turned her head and caught sight of Nami on the upper deck.

"Hey, Nami!" she waved, "Did you have a bath?" she noted that the navigators hair seemed wet.

"Yes," Nami returned her wave, "And it was amazing! You should try it tonight."

Hawke smiled.

"I think I will," she said.

At that moment, Luffy and Usopp reappeared and began rejoicing at the falling snow.

"Oi Zoro!" Luffy shouted up to the training room, "You're being too quiet!"

Hawke looked up.

_So that's where he went,_ she thought.

She laughed as Usopp did an impression of the swordsman and how he should have announced the snowfall.

"Everyone!" the sniper shouted in an obnoxiously deep voice, "It's snowing!"

He then proceeded to jump around the deck.

"Marimo! Baka!" the Luffy joined in on Usopp's taunts.

Hawke giggled and took out her wings.

"Don't be too mean," she said as she lept into the air.

She quickly flew up to the window of the training room and peered in. She could see Zoro sitting at the window opposite her and she tapped on the glass to get his attention.

The swordsman got up and opened the window.

"To be laughed at by those two is so frustrating!" he snapped as he sat down, glaring across the main deck.

Hawke laughed and sat down on the window ledge.

"Are you sure you're okay sitting out there?" Zoro asked her, shifting a little to show that there was space inside.

But Hawke shook her head and retracted her wings.

"I'm fine," she smiled as she looked back out across the water, "I love being able to see so far."

"Yeah," the swordsman grunted.

The pair sat quietly, enjoying each others company and watching the snow fall. Hawke felt a warmth on her hand and looked own to see it covered by Zoro's.

Blushing, she smiled and kept her hand still.

"Do you want to spar?" the swordsman grunted, though he didn't move to get up.

Hawke gently shook her head.

"I'm still sore from yesterday," she said, rubbing her thighs, "I think today should be a restful one."

Zoro shot her a smirk and then took his hand off of hers and slowly reached it towards her waist.

Hawke let out a giggle in spite of herself and shuffled sideways, her hip coming into contact with his knuckles.

"Your hands are warm," she said softly as Zoro's face turned slightly red, "It feels nice. I was a little cold."

This seemed to make him feel more comfortable and he gently rubbed his fingers back and forth across her shirt at her hip. Hawke could feel her heart beating harder, but she just sat quietly, letting both of them enjoy the moment.

She felt his hand trace up her waist and then tug on her jacket.

"Why do you always wear this thing?" Zoro asked gruffly, "You almost never take it off."

Hawke smiled.

"It makes me feel safe," she replied, "And I don't wear it all the time, around the ship anyways. I'm comfortable here."

She saw Zoro smirk.

"Well that's good to hear," he said, "Where'd you get it?"

Hawke looked down at her leather jacket and played with her cuffs.

"The marines that I stayed with for those two years gave it to me," she said, "It was the first thing they bought for me after I went to live with them."

Zoro raised his eyebrow at her.

"Really?" he asked, "That's a strange thing to buy someone."

Hawke laughed.

"Well I think they knew that I didn't like people seeing my back," she explained.

"Oh," the swordsman grunted, "Well that was nice of them."

Hawke nodded.

"And they even left a little message on it," she said.

She quickly shrugged off the jacket and held up the area under the collar.

There were words sewn in dark red thread along the collar line.

"Let the sea bring you adventure, let the wind guide you home," Zoro muttered as he read, "It's nice, I guess."

Hawke smiled.

"Well I like it," she stuck out her tongue and shivered as she put her jacket back on, "Is it just me or is it getting colder?"

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

It was approaching lunch time, which Hawke could tell by the rise of activity in the kitchen, when she caught sight of something ahead of them.

"What's that?" she asked, catching Zoro's attention and pointing.

"A ship…," muttered the swordsman.

Hawke squinted.

"But it looks weird," she mumbled.

Then she turned and called down to the deck.

"Hey, there's a ship ahead!" she shouted, "But something seems off about it!"

The rest of the crew quickly went to the rail and looked out.

Hawke peered back out at the floating vessel.

"It doesn't seem to have a flag or sails," she called down again.

"No sails?" she heard Nami muttered, "So it's just floating there, then?"

Usopp took out his goggles and trained them on the other ship.

"Oh!" he exclaimed, "Someone just came out!... They look really tired… they're fishing?"

Sanji came up and took in the scene.

"Oi, captain?" he asked.

"Yeah!" said Luffy, "Let's go take a look. If they're enemies, we'll just beat them up!"

The Sunny's course was checked and they made their way over to the stranded vessel.

Hawke kept a close eye on the figures at the rail. They looked really tired and worn out.

"I wonder how long they've been floating there?" she muttered as she climbed into the training room and closed the window.

"We can't rule them out as being weak yet," Zoro cautioned as he followed Hawke down the mast, "They could be dangerous."

Hawke blinked as they approached the other ship and the crew began running around, shouting things and surrendering to them.

"They sure don't seem to be very strong..." she gave Zoro a quizzical look, which he returned.

They watched as Luffy went over to the deck of the other ship. The strange men told them that they were fishermen who'd been attacked for no reason and had had their sail and rudder stolen so they couldn't go anywhere.

Luffy invited them over to the Sunny to eat and Chopper set about treating their injuries. Hawke was quick to help out the reindeer and she took on all the easy injuries, like cuts and scrapes, leaving the more serious ones to Chopper.

"My my!" shouted the short man Hawke was currently working on, "What a beautiful woman!"

Hawke blushed.

"Don't get so excited," she said as she tightened the bandage on his leg, "You're all finished. You can head up to the kitchen with the others."

As the man left, Hawke turned to see who was remaining.

Chopper was working on a large, balding man. But other than him, the only person left in the room was a little boy.

Hawke smiled and went over to him.

"Are you hurt anywhere?" she asked warmly.

The boy's eyes widened and he quickly lowered his gaze.

"Just my arm," he muttered, holding it out so Hawke could see.

There was a fairly deep cut on his forearm. Hawke reached out and brought it closer to examine.

"This'll sting a little," she said as she put some disinfectant on a cotton ball, "But don't worry, it's killing all the bad germs in your cut."

The boy nodded and barely let out a gasp as she cleaned his wound.

"You're tough," Hawke let out a chuckle as she began bandaging his arm.

The boy didn't respond.

The man Chopper had been working on stood up and left.

"That's the last one," Chopper smiled.

"I'm almost done," Hawke said as she tied the final knot in the cloth, "There."

The room was silent as she and Chopper began putting away the supplies.

"Umm…"

Hawke blinked and looked around.

The boy was still sitting there.

"What?" asked Chopper, "You don't want to eat?"

But Hawke frowned. She could tell there was something bothering this young boy.

"Well?" she asked, "What's wrong?"

The boy suddenly fell to his knees and bowed his head,

"Doctor-san! Nurse-san!" he exclaimed, "I want you to see one more person."

Hawke blinked as the boy looked up.

"Can you come with me to our ship?" he asked.

She looked down at Chopper and saw the reindeer smile.

"Of course," she said, putting a hand on Chopper's hat, "We need to make sure everyone gets treatment."

The two followed the boy across the gangplank and onto the floating vessel.

As they were led down into the deepest parts of the ship, Hawke was beginning to get nervous. She checked her pockets to make sure she had some knives available if they needed them.

"Are you sure there's people down here?" asked Chopper nervously.

The boy didn't reply. Instead he began unpiling a wall of boxes that blocked the way ahead of them.

_Where is he taking us?_ Hawke thought worriedly, _I should have kept my sword out…_

But she followed Chopper as they climbed through the opening and into a very dark passageway.

Hawke heard some scratching noises and then a lamp was lit. The light immediately revealed a bed with a very sick man lying in it.

"Is that him?" Chopper gasped.

"Yeah," the boy replied, "He was badly injured and lost consciousness a long time ago. Please help him!"

Hawke quickly went over to the bedside and helped lift Chopper up onto the blankets.

She watched as they were drawn back and gasped.

"What's with this wound?!" she exclaimed.

There was a large, bloody stain right across the man's chest.

"It's been infected," Chopper said seriously, "Why did you guys leave him like this?!"

Hawke shuddered as she saw the look of pain on the poor man's face. His expressions were constantly changing, even though he was unconscious.

_He must be stuck in a nightmare,_ she thought.

"We can't move him," Chopper said as he analyzed the wound, "I have to operate right now!"

Hawke's eyes widened as the doctor emptied his backpack and began the operation. She helped remove the dirty dressings, but she wasn't experienced enough to help with much else. She watched over Chopper's shoulder though, knowing that this might come in handy in the future if he wasn't around to help one of the crew, and handed him the supplies he needed.

The boy watched from his seat on a box behind them.

"Don't worry," Hawke smiled back at him, seeing how nervous he was, "Chopper is the best doctor this side of the Grand Line. Your friend is getting the best treatment he could wish for."

The boy offered her a weak smile.

Eventually, Chopper finished the operation and Hawke helped him put clean bandages on the patient.

"How is he?" the boy came over and asked.

"I did everything I could," Chopper said as he closed his bag, "The rest depends on him."

The three of them glanced down at the sick man that lay before them, he was now sleeping calmly.

"Thank you Doctor-sensei, Nurse-san!" the boy gave them a bright smile.

"Don't relax just yet," Chopper cautioned, "He's still in danger."

Hawke put her hand on the boy's shoulder.

"And it's about time we introduced ourselves," she smiled, "This is Chopper and my name is Hawke."

The boy gave her a nod.

"And I'm Jiro," he said.

"It's nice to meet you," Hawke said warmly, "You and your crew seem like nice people."

Jiro's smile faltered and he looked back to the man in the bed.

Hawke narrowed her eyes.

_That's quite suspicious,_ she thought.

But she didn't have time to think about this because right then the ship gave a huge lurched and she was thrown backwards.

"What's going on?!" wailed Chopper as he bounced back onto Hawke's lap.

The pair of them quickly got back up.

"The cuts that I just stitched up will come open again!" shouted Chopper, "Help hold him down!"

The three of them held on to the bed and the patient as the ship continued to jerk around.

"I wonder what's happening out there," Hawke muttered, "I hope it's nothing bad."

The tossing of the ship gradually subsided and the group breathed a sigh of relief when they saw that the stitches were still in place.

"Oi, Chopper! Hawke!" a voice suddenly came down from above, "We're here to bring you back!"

Hawke blinked.

"That's Luffy," she said, "Let's go see what he wants."

The two left Jiro and made their way back up to the main deck.

"Luffy!" Chopper called as they emerged into the snow.

"Chopper! Hawke!" their captain yelled, "You were all right then! Alright, let's go back."

Hawke heard some footsteps behind her and Jiro suddenly ran out in front of them, raising his arms.

"Wait!" the boy shouted, "I won't let you take them! We need the doctors to stay here!"

Jiro looked around frantically and picked up a broom.

"If you want to take them away, then…" he pointed the handle at Luffy and charged.

"Wait, Jiro!" some of his crew held him back, "You'll be killed!"

Hawke followed Chopper as he went to speak to Luffy.

"What's this all about?" their captain asked, rubbing his hat.

"Luffy…" Chopper began slowly, "I want to stay on this ship for a little while. There's a heavily injured man below deck. We've finished surging him, but he's still not safe. Please let me look after him a little longer."

Luffy smiled down at the little reindeer.

"Oh, I got it," he said, "Then we'll wait. Do you want to stay too, Hawke?"

The scout looked down to Chopper.

"Do you still need my help, Doctor?" she asked.

Chopper thought for a moment.

"This would be a good time to see how good you are at diagnosis," he said.

Hawke smiled and looked back to Luffy and nodded.

"Alright," the captain said, "We'll wait. I'll come with you."

Hawke shot a glance at Zoro, who was standing behind the captain. He looked unsure and on-guard and gave her a stern look. He frowned at her and she nodded. She knew she had to be careful on this strange ship.

Chopper and Luffy headed back into the ship, and Hawke followed after them.

But Zoro caught her arm.

"Just be careful," he muttered.

"Of course," Hawke smiled and she reentered the ship.

When she reached the sick bed again, she heard Chopper and Jiro talking.

She listened quietly as Jiro explained that they had been a pirate crew themselves. And then he told about how they had been to the New World, but had been terribly defeated. That fight had left this man, their captain Puzzle, in a coma.

Hawke felt sympathy for the boy. She went over and put her hand on Jiro's shoulder.

"It doesn't matter what you are or what you've been through," she said quietly, "You didn't need to be that forward with Luffy about wanting Chopper to stay. Chopper never leaves until he's sure his patient is on the mend."

Jiro looked up at her and gave her a small smile.

"Okay, Hawke," Chopper tapped on her leg, "Tell me what you think is wrong with him now."

Hawke turned her attention to Puzzle and looked him over. Her attempt at diagnosis was mostly successful, but Chopper ended up explaining a great deal to her anyways. And by the end of it, he seemed pretty tuckered out.

Hawke looked around and saw that Jiro and Luffy were both falling asleep.

"Well why don't you take a nap as well," she said, giving the doctor a blanket, "You've worked really hard."

She watched as the three boys began snoring softly and laughed as Luffy fell sideways onto the floor without waking up.

She kept watch over Puzzle as time went on. He was sleeping soundly though, and she found it hard to stay awake. She was just about to doze off when there was a sudden movement.

"Vigaro! No!"

Hawke's eyes snapped open and she saw Puzzle reaching out his hand. She quickly took it in her own and squeezed.

"Its okay, Puzzle," she said soothingly, "Just rest and recover, okay?"

His eyes were still closed, but he was fidgeting around.

"Vigaro… Vigaro…" he muttered.

Hawke squeezed his hand again, knowing there wasn't much she could do to comfort the man.

_At least he doesn't seem to be in any pain_, she thought.

"Puzzle-san!" Jiro had woken up and came running over to the bedside.

"It's okay," Hawke smiled, "He seems to be having a bad dream, that's all."

"Vigaro!" Puzzle shouted quite loudly.

His eyes opened and he sat bolt upright, banging his head on the rafter above him and falling back down.

Hawke let out a cry of surprise.

"He's awake!" she called over to Chopper.

Puzzle sat up slowly, rubbing his head.

"Puzzle-san!" cried Jiro, obviously very happy.

He jumped up and gave Chopper a huge hug.

"Thank you sensei! You're really a genius!" he shouted, "Thank you, Hawke-san!"

He fell onto Hawke's lap and pressed his face into her leg.

She smiled as she felt the warmth of a few tears soak through her pants.

Jiro got up and turned back to Puzzle, who was looking around him in confusion.

The red haired captain let out a little grunt as he saw that Hawke was still holding his hand.

"Oh, sorry!" Hawke quickly let go, "You were having a nightmare and reached out…"

She looked away, blushing and embarrassed.

"It's okay…," Puzzle muttered, still seeming confused, "Jiro, why am I here?"

"You don't remember, captain?" the boy asked.

He retold of how they had been defeated in the New World and how their first-mate, Vigaro had sacrificed himself so they could escape. And then about how they had ended up working under a family of bounty hunters called the Accino family.

After hearing this, Puzzle began to get out of bed, but his legs bumped against Hawke, since she was still sitting on the edge.

"Who are you?" he asked groggily.

"I'm Hawke, scout for the Strawhat Pirates," she smiled, "That's our captain, the one sleeping, and this is Chopper, our doctor. He's the one who saved your life."

"Hawke, you helped too," the reindeer said, dancing around at her praise.

Puzzle gave a small chuckle.

"Well at least you're a nice thing to wake up too," he smirked.

Hawke blushed and got off the bedside.

Puzzle swung his legs down.

"I'm alright now," he grunted, "Bring the whole crew up on deck."

They helped Puzzle out onto the deck and watched as his crew gathered around him.

"Let's go, Chopper, Hawke," Luffy smiled.

"Okay," Chopper grinned and they headed back towards the tow rope that attached this ship to the Sunny.

"Oi, Chopper-sensei, Luffy-san, Hawke-san," they heard Jiro's voice and turned around, "Thank you very much."

Hawke smiled.

"Don't worry about it," said Luffy.

"I just did what a doctor has to do," Chopper wiggled around a little, blushing.

"I'm just glad your captain is okay now," Hawke said, "A crew needs its captain, after all."

Jiro smiled.

"I'll definitely pay you back somehow," he declared.

"The next time we meet is in the New World," Luffy said.

"Haha!" Jiro laughed, "I guess that makes us rivals, right captain?"

He looked over at Puzzle, but the man had a serious look on his face.

"Captain?" the crew asked.

"We are no longer going to the New World," Puzzle declared, "We will stay as members of the bounty hunters."

The Strawhats watched as the other crew argued, not believing what they had just heard. Their captain had lost his belief in the Phoenix Pirates, and his crew refused to accept it. But there was nothing Hawke or any of them could do. They turned to leave.

But this time, Puzzle called after them.

"I would like to repay you somehow for the treatment," he said, "But I lost everything in the New World. The New World isn't as easy as you think."

Hawke saw Luffy stop and smirk.

"It's okay," he said, "When we get there, we'll know. Besides that, we're strong!"

Hawke looked back and saw Puzzle giving them a distressed look.

"I see," he said, then turned away, "Do what you want."

Hawke bit her lip.

"He gave up the flag," Luffy muttered, seeing her reaction, "Those guys aren't pirates anymore."

They made their way to the tow rope and Hawke climbed on and started on her way across to the Sunny.

But just as she reached the mid-point, a huge explosion erupted out of the water in between the ships. Hawke screamed as she was flung into the air and then drenched in ice-cold water. She was plunged into the sea and felt the cold pierce her like needles.

Hawke didn't know which way was up or down. She tumbled about, flailing her arms, trying to grab onto something. Before she could orient herself, she was hit from behind by a huge force and pushed upwards. She felt air on her face again as she was thrust, spluttering, out of the water.

"What's going on?" she gasped as the world bobbed around her.

Hawke felt something firm beneath her and rolled over, trying to stand. But the world was still spinning and she couldn't get a foothold.

_For god's sake_, she thought and took out her wings and lifted herself into the sky.

She looked around but couldn't see any sign of the Sunny or the other pirate ship. There was nothing but icebergs. Icebergs that were moving around as if they were alive.

"Damn," Hawke muttered, "My fingers are freezing."

She looked down and saw ice forming on her jacket and hair.

"Falling in the water is the worst thing you can do in the winter," she shivered.

"Oi, Hawke!" she heard someone call.

Looking around, trying to make out anything in the world that was twirling around her, she saw a dark shape off to her right.

As she turned to see who it was, a cracking sound came from behind her and she was struck in the small of the back. The force sending her hurtling forwards.

Hawke tried to fly to safety but her wings were stiff from the wet and the cold and she couldn't get them to move fast enough.

"Help!" she cried as the icy waves drew nearer.

Just as she was about to be plunged into the depths once more, she felt something grab her and jerk her upwards.

Hawke gasped as she went flying through the air and landed with a thump on something solid.

Groaning, she rolled over.

"Geez, what were you doing?" a voice snapped.

Hawke turned to see Zoro standing behind her, giving her a scowl.

"I was just coming back to the Sunny," she said, "I was on the tow rope when there was this explosion and I fell into the water."

She became aware of some icicles dangling from her hair in front of her face.

"I'm so cold!" she exclaimed and began shivering violently, "What happened? Where is everyone?"

She turned around and looked at the water below her. There were still no ships to be seen, the Thousand Sunny or otherwise.

She stiffly returned her wings into their tattoo form before it became impossible to do so.

"I was already off the ship, exploring," Zoro grunted as he came up beside her, "I saw you in the air and came over."

Hawke tried to bring her arms down, but her leather jacket was beginning to become very stiff.

"Thank you for catching me," she sniffled, "I don't want to be in that water again. It's freezing!"

She let out a sneeze.

"Is that all you have on?" Zoro shot her a worried look, "The other's have gotten lost, so I don't have any other clothes."

Hawke sneezed again and looked around.

"We need to find the Sunny," she sniffled, feeling the wind biting her cheeks, "Actually, anywhere w-w-warm would be nice."

"Here," she felt a weight on her shoulders and looked around.

Zoro had taken off his jacket and draped it over her shoulders.

"Zoro, you'll freeze!" she stammered.

"Not as quickly as you will if you don't get warm," he snapped as he pulled the hood up over her head and helped her get her arms into the proper holes, "Why'd you have to go fall in the water?"

"I didn't do it on purpose!" Hawke tried to sound angry, but she ended up with more of a whimpery note.

She saw Zoro cast her a worried glance.

As concerned as she was for the swordsman, she was worried about herself a little more. She was rapidly losing the feeling in her arms and legs. Her fingers and toes had already gone numb.

_It's a good thing I put my wings away when I did_, she thought.

"Come on," he grunted, holding onto her arm, "We've gotta find someplace where you can warm up."

Hawke let herself be pulled across the icy wasteland.

_I don't think being led by Zoro is such a good idea_, she thought, _but at this rate I can't even see._

She blinked painfully as her skin started to feel tight.

"Z-Zoro," she stuttered, "How's my face?"

The swordsman stopped walking and turned. He had to lift her hair icicles out of the way to see her, but when he did, his expression changed to one of fear.

"We need to hurry!" he exclaimed, "Here, hold your arms up."

"I can't move them," Hawke muttered.

Zoro grunted.

Hawke wondered what he was doing. But then she felt something hook under her arms and press up against her stomach. Then she felt her legs being lifted off the ground and her knees bend into a sitting position.

"It'll be faster if I carry you," Zoro grunted, "Are you okay?"

A gust of wind blew and Hawke felt her lips becoming numb.

"Yeah," she managed to get out.

She felt Zoro pull the hood of his jacket further over her head and then start running.

She pressed her face against his back and realized that she was looking at his shirt.

_He's going to be freezing soon too!_ She thought as she tried moving her fingers, berating herself for falling into the water.

As she breathed into the swordsman's back, she began feeling a warm sensation in her limbs.

_This feels nice_, she thought, _maybe the extra layer is working._

She let out a yawn.

"Oi, Hawke," she heard Zoro's voice call back after a few moments, "I want you to keep talking to me, okay?"

"Mm?" Hawke grunted, her working her mouth to keep the blood flowing, "I'll t-t-try."

"Tell me about what you did this morning," he panted, "After breakfast."

Hawke felt a bump as he jumped over something. The hood was pulled too far down, so she couldn't see anything ahead of them, only what was directly at Zoro's feet. She blinked lazily as the blue of the water flashed momentarily under them.

"Well," she mumbled, "I w-went down to the l-l-library to look at the fish. A-and I g-g-guess I ended up just think-k-king about when I lived w-w-with Luffy."

"Oh?" Zoro grunted as he jumped the distance between one ice berg to another, "How were those times?"

Hawke worked her fingers against the sleeves of Zoro's jacket and stifled another yawn.

_I can't feel anything at all now_, she thought.

"They wer g-g-g-g-g-," she couldn't finish her sentence because of a violent shiver that ran through her body.

"Hang in there, Hawke," she heard Zoro's anxious voice.

She forced herself to focus.

"They were great," she said, "We w-w-would train every d-d-day and w-we spent all our t-t-time together."

"Really?" Zoro sounded slightly relieved and this gave Hawke some strength to continue.

"Yeah," she mumbled, "We would ch-ch-chase mountain bandits out of the t-t-town. Well, L-L-L-Luffy would, then I would f-f-fend them off while d-d-d-dragging him back home."

She heard Zoro let out a jerky chuckle.

"Sounds like he had a good sister watching his back," he said over his shoulder.

Hawke tried to smile, but wasn't sure if she'd succeeded since she could no longer feel her face. The warmth along her limbs was growing, making its way up through her abdomen. It felt quite cozy…

Just then Zoro jerked to a stop.

"What's that?" he muttered.

Hawke tried to lift her head to see through her frozen hair. But all she could make out was a large blob of yellow. She felt her eyelids becoming heavy.

"Z-Zor-," she tried to say his name, but her mouth stopped responding.

"Well whatever it is," Zoro muttered, "It looks warm."

Hawke felt the movement of his body again, but her eyes closed and wouldn't open.

_Zoro…_, she thought as she fell into a warm and cozy sleep.


	40. Chapter 40: Flags Returned& Rediscovered

**Chapter 40**

**Flags Returned and Rediscovered**

"Hawke! Oi Hawke!"

She could hear her name being called… that was Zoro's voice.

_I better get up then_, she thought, _but where is he?_

She could feel her body tingling all over.

_This feels weird,_ her thoughts were foggy.

She felt herself falling back to sleep.

"Oi Hawke! Wake up, you can't be sleeping right now!"

She heard herself groan.

"Hawke! Good, you're alive!"

_Of course I'm alive_, she thought, _I was just having a rest._

But then her memory of being frozen came back and she realized why her body felt strange.

"Come on!" Zoro's voice seemed to be getting more frantic, "Open yours eyes!"

Hawke let out another groan as she forced herself out of her nap. She needed to show Zoro that she was okay.

She finally became aware of her surroundings. There was silence around her, save for Zoro's voice, and she felt warm again, but not in the freezing to death sort of way.

Opening her eyes, she blinked blearily as light flooded her vision.

"Zoro?" she mumbled.

"Hawke!" she heard him close by.

Her vision finally came into focus and she turned her head.

They were sitting in a hallway or passage of some sort. The walls were painted extremely bright and vibrant colours. And the temperature was almost uncomfortably warm.

Hawke looked down and saw that Zoro's jacket had been taken off of her.

She felt a weight on her shoulders and looked up.

Zoro was kneeling in front of her, his hands on her shoulders and a relieved smile on his face.

"You're finally awake!" he let out a sigh and sat down beside her.

"Yes," Hawke blushed, "I'm sorry..."

She looked around her again.

"Where are we?" she asked.

Zoro smirked.

"Well it looks like I got you out of that cold just in time," he said, "I found this place and snuck in. But it took me a while to wake you up."

His voice dropped and he frowned.

"You were pretty blue all over," he muttered, shooting a glance at her.

Hawke blinked and reached up to massage her cheeks.

"Yes, I was completely frozen because of that water," she said, "But it looks like you saved me."

She gave the swordsman a smile and blushed when he turned red and stood up.

"Well, we should take a look around, now that you're okay," he said, turning away so she couldn't see his face.

Hawke let out a soft giggle and shakily stood up. She felt something damp on her forehead and reached up. Her hair, as well as her clothes were quite wet. But the heat from whatever building they were in was making steam rise from her body and was drying her quickly.

"Let's go," she said, reaching out and taking Zoro's hand, "We still need to find the others."

They started walking down the hallway.

"Hey…," Zoro started, then stopped and seemed to be debating with himself.

"Yeah?" Hawke asked, watching him.

"You… you really scared me there," the swordsman muttered, looking towards the ground.

Hawke blinked.

"I know," she sighed, "I'm sorry I fell into the water… it was stupid."

Zoro stiffened.

"No," he snapped, "It wasn't your fault… I just…"

Hawke squeezed his hand.

"Hey," she caught his attention, "I'm okay now. You got me here safely. I'm not about to leave the Strawhat crew just yet."

Zoro looked a little relieved at her words, but something still flickered in his eyes.

"Nothing's going to happen to me or any of us," Hawke said reassuringly, "We've got a strong crew and a captain that won't let anything hurt us."

She knew that Zoro would be able to carry on without her if something ever did happen to her. He was too strong to let a loss stop him from following his ambition. He was probably worried that it would hurt her feelings if he told her. But Hawke understood him. On the other hand, she wasn't sure how she would react if something happened to Zoro. She hadn't given it much thought and she wasn't going to, since it was an unpleasant subject.

Hawke's attention refocused as Zoro smiled.

"Yeah," he shook his head, "You're right."

She smiled and stood on her tiptoes to place a gentle kiss on his cheek.

As she lowered herself back down, something down the hall caught her attention.

There was a little girl with dark blue hair standing and smiling at them, waving her hand happily.

Hawke blinked.

_She's the girl from Zoro's picture_, she thought, _Kuina! No… Kuina's spirit?_

Just then they heard a voice.

"Kanpacchino, is that you?"

Hawke jumped and watched as the little girl's body faded and disappeared into thin air.

"Who was that?" Zoro snapped and looked around.

Hawke shook her head and followed his gaze.

They were standing in front of a doorway.

"What's in there?" Zoro asked as he pushed the door open.

Steam billowed out into the hall, swirling around their feet.

"Wait, Zoro!" Hawke hissed.

But it was too late, the swordsman had already stepped inside.

Hawke lingered by the door, watching the steam flowing out of the room.

"It's really hot in here," she heard Zoro's voice,"What's with this room?"

Taking a careful step into the room, Hawke squinted through the steam, trying to find the swordsman.

Then she heard a clink.

_Zoro's got his swords out_, she recognized the sound and stiffened, taking two knives out of her jacket.

"Who're you?" she heard the swordsman ask.

"What's this?" another voice replied, "It isn't Kanpacchino?"

_There is someone else in here_, she thought, _why did he have to rush in?_

Hawke stayed close to the wall and slunk around the room. She finally reached a space where the mist cleared a little and she could make out Zoro standing in front of a very large man who was lying on a sofa.

She watched as the fat man offered Zoro a bottle of wine.

"I know it's kind of random," the man said, "But…want a drink?"

Hawke sighed as she saw swordsman lower his weapons.

_Well, Zoro's going to be there for a bit_, she thought, _I guess I'll have a look around._

The two men were carrying on like they were best friends, so Hawke took the opportunity to sneak around behind the man's sofa.

She waited for the steam to clear and looked around. A small gasp escaped her lips.

"So?" she heard the fat man's voice, "Do you like it? It's my special collection."

_Collection!?_ Hawke stared in awe and horror at the vast amount of pirate flags that adorned the walls, hanging on streamers across the ceiling and stuck onto boards around the room.

"Collection?" she heard Zoro ask.

"That's right," the fat man replied, "I collect the flags of my hunted pirates. It's great right?"

_He's a bounty hunte_r_!_ Hawke realized, _this is bad, we have to leave._

"Oi, what about that one?" she heard Zoro's voice again.

_What is he asking things for?_ She thought frantically, making her way back towards the door.

"The one there with the swords and the one black wing?"

Hawke froze.

_What!?_

She quickly sped back around and peered through the steam, trying to see which flag Zoro was pointing at.

"Oh?" the fat man began to laugh, "That's an old one! Back when I went out myself to do these jobs, before I had my family."

Hawke's eyes fell on the flag in question and she let out another little gasp. It was hanging high up on the far wall, almost covered by the flags surrounding it, but clear enough to see the mark. The two crossed swords and the one black wing stretching out behind the white skull.

She took the letter out from her pocket and was amazed to see that it hadn't been damaged by the water and ice. She unfolded it and held it up to the flag before her.

_There's no mistaking it_, she thought.

It was Salem's flag! The Black Wing Pirate flag! What was it doing here?!

"I hear that the pirate who sailed under that flag was quite notorious," Zoro spoke up, "You must've been quite the fighter to get your hands on it."

The fat man let out another laugh.

"It was no easy task, believe me," he cackled, "That man was cunning as they come. He knew how to use the sea itself as a weapon. But in the end I was stronger than he. That's how you get by in the New World, you need smarts, but strength also, or else you'll get crushed."

"The New World, huh?" Zoro took another swig of his wine.

Hawke stared up at the flag.

_What happened to Salem_? she thought, stuffing the letter back into her jacket, _surely these weren't the people who'd been chasing him at the Sabaody Archipelago? What had happened to him after?_

There was a sudden flapping noise and Hawke looked up as a flying fish flew in through an open window.

"Oh! It's here!" the fat man's voice sounded suddenly menacing, "After seeing this you should understand as well."

Hawke took a few steps forward and saw Zoro's expression change to one of shock.

"A total bounty of over 650 million…" the fat man said, "The Strawhat Pirate's flag."

Hawke had to bite her lip to keep herself from shouting.

_How did he get our flag_! she thought frantically, _Luffy's going to be furious, if he isn't already._

"How is it?" she heard the fat man's voice again, "120 million beri bounty, Roronoa Zoro?"

Hawke froze.

He knew who Zoro was! But did he know that she was here also?

"You!" she could see Zoro slam his mug against the floor, causing it to break, "That pirate flag. How'd you get it?!"

"Quite a spectacular flag, don't you think?" the fat man taunted.

Hawke saw how angry Zoro was. He stood and prepared to draw his swords. The fat man also moved to stand. His form towered over Zoro as he held their flag in his hand.

"My children should have captured your nakama by now," he chuckled.

Zoro drew his sword.

"Too bad I have to cut up the guy who gave me food," the swordsman snapped.

Hawke gripped her knives out and crept up behind the sofa.

"Cut me up?" she heard the fat man laugh, "I wonder if you can?"

There was a sudden gust of wind and Hawke saw the steam at her feet begin to swirl around.

"A devil fruit user?" she heard Zoro mutter.

"Everything I touch will melt," the fat man said menacingly, "That sword will melt like this."

There was a hissing noise.

"That is my warm warm power," he cackled.

Hawke peeked over the sofa, but all she could see was the fat man's back and Zoro standing in front of him. The swordsman caught her eye and he frowned and twitched his hand, making a downward motion.

Hawke quickly sunk back behind the sofa.

"So as long as I don't touch you, I'm good," Zoro said.

Hawke heard him prepare an attack.

There was a sudden flash of light, then a cracking sound.

Hawke looked up and gasped as half the ceiling broke off and let in the sun.

_Did he get the fat guy with that?_ she thought and stood up.

She looked over the sofa and gasped.

"What?" exclaimed Zoro.

The man was still standing before him, apparently unharmed.

There was a sudden blast of hot air and Zoro was thrown back against the wall.

_Zoro!_ Hawke had to bite her lip to keep from shouting out.

The fat man took a steaming step towards the fallen swordsman.

"You!" he growled, "Are you going to ruin my collection?"

_His collection!_ Hawke glanced up to the hundreds of pirate flags, then back at Salem's flag_, I can distract him with these._

The air was becoming hotter by the second. Hawke brushed her hair out of her eyes as she turned as raised her arm to get Zoro's attention.

She saw the swordsman glance her way and she motioned up to the flags, then she took out her wings and flew up to the Black Wing Pirate flag and took it off the wall. She quickly tied two corners around her neck, letting the body of the flag billow out behind her, covering her wings as she hovered in the air.

She looked back down to Zoro and saw him tense, his mouth press into a firm line.

Just then, the doors burst open and three more people that Hawke didn't recognize burst into the room.

"Papa?" said a woman with light blue hair, "What's wrong?"

"You guys!" the fat man growled, "Haven't you all prepared my birthday presents?!"

As he said this, another huge waved of heat filled the room.

Hawke gasped as the air dried in her throat.

"Papa, listen!" the woman began, "We have them prepared for-"

"Ah!" shouted a blonde man standing beside her, "Ro-Roronoa Zoro! Why is he here?!"

At the same moment the woman shrieked.

"Sharp Eyes Hawke!" she shouted.

The fat man spun around and looked up at Hawke. He began emitting even more steam and took a threatening step towards her.

"You dare touch my collection!" he bellowed, "Where did you come from!?"

Hawke stared coldly down at him.

_Good_, she thought, _I have his attention_.

"How is she flying?!" a man with a hockey stick shouted angrily, "Is this some kind of devil fruit power?"

Hawke turned her attention to the three people standing by the door. The man with the hockey stick was running over to the wall.

_What is he doing?_ Hawke thought as she peered ahead of him.

Her eyes caught a small rectangular box sticking out of the smooth surface.

_A button!_ She realized, _Well I don't think we want any of our enemies pressing buttons._

"You," she heard Zoro growl, "I won't forgive you! You won't catch us all like some stupid game!"

Hawke swung around to the swordsman.

"Zoro!" she shouted, "Now!"

She didn't wait to see if he had understood her meaning. Whipping her knives out, she flung them at the hockey player as he reached out to touch the button. With a whizzing sound, the knives struck their mark. The man's arm and torso were now pinned to the wall, he couldn't move.

"What the hell?!" he shouted.

But Hawke swept down and was now within striking distance. She saw him raise his free hand, which held his hockey stick, and used another one of her knives to slice though the shaft. Wood splinters flew everywhere as Hawke delt the final blow; a well placed hit to the head with her hilt. The man sagged against the wall.

"That takes care of you," she muttered as she spun around to face the room.

While she had been busy doing away with the hockey player, Zoro had started his attack on the fat man, who seemed to be named Accino.

But to her worry, the swordsman hadn't done any noticeable damage.

_What does his power do to make him untouchable? It seems he can do more than just make everything hotter,_ Hawke thought as she faced off with the two remaining people, the blonde man and the blue haired woman.

But she didn't have time to think about it. The couple before her were shouting something and seemed to be singing at her.

"What are they doing?" she muttered as the man twirled the lady around above his head.

Suddenly, the woman shot towards Hawke, feet first; her entire body flying towards the scout.

"Jeez!" she gasped as she leaned back.

The woman's sharp, skate wearing, feet flew by, barely missing her nose.

The woman hit the wall behind Hawke and the skates embedded themselves into it.

_Now's my chance!_ Hawke thought, _they seem to fight as a team, so I'll get them while they're separated._

She took to the air again, glancing back to see that Salem's flag was still hiding her wings, and took out another knife. She held both kinves in her hands and dove at the man, who was rushing over to the woman who still had her feet stuck in the wall.

But as Hawke sliced her knives downwards, the man's leg shot up and deflected her attack, knocking one of her knives out of her hand.

"Don't get so full of yourself, girly," the man smirked as he kicked at her again.

_He fights like Sanji,_ Hawke thought as she rolled through the air and landed on the ground to avoid his attack.

She faced off with her new opponent and began circling the room.

_If he fights like Sanji,_ _then I can't get close to him_, she thought with a smile_, but I don't need to get close to him at all._

She retrieved her fallen knife and tightened her fists around the hilt. Scanning his form from where she stood, Hawke could tell that he had no armour whatsoever. She picked her target areas and stretched her arm back in preparation to throw.

"Not too bright, are you?" she heard a voice behind her as a hand gripped her arm.

Hawke gasped as she struggled to free herself.

_Damn_, she thought, _I thought she was still stuck in the wall._

The woman behind her cackled.

"Alright, Honey," she sang at the man, "You go and finish her off now."

Hawke hissed as the man laughed and made goo-goo eyes.

"You are just the _best_, Albel-chan!" he swooned.

"Aww, thank you, Honey-pie," Albel giggled.

Hawke watched as the man raised his foot again.

"Prepare to be defeated!" he shouted as he lept towards her.

Hawke flared her wings up behind her and heard Albel give an exclamation as she fell back.

The scout dropped to the ground as the man flew over her and collided head on with his beloved.

While the couple were busy consoling each other, Hawke got to her feet and shot another glance around for Zoro.

She blinked.

Accino hadn't moved from the spot he'd been standing in the last time she'd looked over. But Zoro was almost bent double and panting, sweat streaming down his face.

Hawke suddenly became aware of the sweat that was covering her face and running down her neck. The room had warmed some ten's of degrees since they'd begun to fight.

"How dare you hurt my family!" bellowed Acchino, "How dare you sully my collection!"

There was a hissing sound and Hawke was suddenly blown back and hit the wall. A wave of immense heat washed over her and she felt the moisture in her mouth and throat, even her eyes, dry up. Coughing and gasping, she pushed herself up and staggered forward.

But as she peered out at the room, she noticed that Zoro and Accino were gone. Blinking, she also registered that the heat was quickly dissipating.

_Probably through that huge gash in the wall,_ she thought, taking in the large opening that hadn't been there before.

She ran over to the crack and peered out.

On the ice below the building, Zoro and Accino were fighting. Zoro must have landed a blow because Accino was fuming and steaming.

"He must have blown them out there with that heat blast," Hawke muttered.

Just then, she raised her eyes and gasped.

"OUR FLAG!" she heard a familiar voice calling across the semi-frozen glacier, "GIVE IT BACK!"

"Luffy!" she bit her lip and watched a little row boat approaching from the water, with the Phoenix Pirate's ship behind him.

_Luffy's coming!_ She thought frantically, _we need to get the flag back and get out of here! Where is everybody?!_

Just then, she saw Nami's orange hair and Franky's large fists as a group of people came running out of the building right below Hawke.

"They're okay!" she sighed happily, "And they'll keep Luffy busy."

She stepped back from the hole in the wall.

"I need our flag!" she whispered hurriedly as she spun around.

"Just hold on a minute!" she heard Albel's voice.

Hawke jumped and reached for her knives.

"Don't think you can beat me because my dear boyfriend has been blown away by Papa," Albel said scornfully.

Hawke blinked

She could make out a pair of boots and a tuft of blonde hair sticking out from either side of a flag that hung low on the wall to her left.

_Really?_ She thought.

"Well just because _you're all by yourself_ just means I can finish you off faster," Hawke said loudly.

She took a step forward and lifted her weapons.

Albel raised her foot and lunged at her.

Hawke dove to the side and stabbed her dagger out, trying to injure the legs that were constantly flying at her. But Albel was quicker than she had expected and was able to dodge the scout's attacks.

Hawke decided to change her tactic and took to the air again, flying high to get a good view of her target.

"You're not the only one who knows how to spin," she called down as she began twirling herself in the air.

She spun faster and faster and then let herself drop towards Albel. As she approached the ground, she started to drift, pushing Albel back until she had her cornered against the wall.

Hawke hovered, still spinning, in front of the woman. She was waiting for the man to emerge from his hiding spot.

And sure enough, after a few hairs on Albel's head were grazed by Hawke's flying knives, she saw a flash of blonde out of the corner of her eye and immediately stopped her spinning, using her wings to propel herself at the man. He had been in mid jump, his arms curving up above his head in a way that reminded Hawke of Mister 2 from Baroque Works. But as she flew at him, his eyes widened and his arms faltered. Hawke smacked him across the face with the flat of her knife, making his face plunge towards the ground as his feet spun upwards. She then grabbed his foot and began her spin once more.

"What are you doing?!" she heard Albel cry out.

Hawke smiled as she flung the man around.

"Here's you're boyfriend!" she shouted as she let the man go, launching him directly at Albel, "Looks like he wasn't blown away after all."

She watched as the man collided with his partner and then smashed through the weakened wall behind them.

Hawke heard their screams as they fell out of the room.

"Or at least he hadn't been blown away yet," she chuckled as she dusted herself off.

Going and looking out the hole she had just made, Hawke saw the two crumpled bodies lying under the rubble that was still falling on top of them.

"That takes care of that," she muttered.

She turned and went over to the wall where their flag had been hung.

"I'll be taking this," she stated as she took it down and folded it up.

Putting the flag into her pocket, she reached up and undid the flag around her neck.

Hawke held it up and gazed at the flag bearing the black wing.

"So Accino took this flag from Salem in the New World somewhere," she muttered, "So he made it past Fishman Island at least."

She folded that flag up and put it in her pocket to join their own flag.

"Now it's time to see the others," she said as she turned in the air to go down to the door, "I need to tell them that I have our flag."

As she made her way to the door, another symbol caught her eye.

A large flag with a double-winged skull in front of a backdrop of fire.

_Could this be…?_ She flew up to the flag.

Not knowing why, Hawke quickly took the flag off the wall and folded it up.

She added this new flag to her own little collection and then began flying back down to the floor. She was about to land when the doors burst open and three figures came running through.

"Chopper! Jiro! Puzzle!" Hawke smiled as she recognized her crewmate and new friends.

She landed lightly and ran over to them.

"I'm glad you're all okay," she smiled.

Chopper returned her smiled happily. Hawke noticed Jiro and Puzzle staring at her with wide eyes.

"What?" she asked warily.

"You have wings?!" they exclaimed in unison.

Hawke started as she realized she hadn't returned her wings to their tattoo form yet.

"Oops," she muttered and gave the boy and man an awkward smile, "Yeah, I do."

They gawked at her again. Then Jiro smiled and laughed.

"Their whole crew is amazing!" he cheered, "Just like ours!"

"Well it's about time we get out of-"

Hawke was cut short by a huge explosion erupting from behind her. She turned to see Accino breaking through the wall again and flying up and over them.

_Uh oh_, she thought, _Luffy won't be far behind him!_

Accino was even hotter than when he'd been angry at her and Zoro. As he flew by, the flags that were closest to him began catching fire.

The force of the blast knocked Hawke off her feet and she was flown through the air along with all the debris.

"Hot!" she heard Chopper wail.

Then there was a pause.

"Zoro!" the doctor's voice sounded extremely relieved.

_Zoro_! Hawke took out her wings and hovered in the air.

She searched through the flying rocks until she saw a familiar orange coat. With a smile, she sped towards him, catching Jiro on her way over.

She landed lightly and let Jiro down.

"Thanks, Hawke-san," the boy smiled at her.

She nodded and watched as he ran over to Puzzle.

The debris fall subsided and Hawke stood with Zoro and Chopper.

Just then, the rest of the crew, minus Luffy and Franky, arrived.

"Chopper! Hawke!" they greeted them.

"I'm sorry everyone!" wailed Chopper, "I couldn't find our flag before they all caught fire!"

Hawke smiled and put her hand on the reindeer's hat.

"Don't worry Chopper," she said as she reached into her jacket, "I have a feeling you wouldn't have found it anyways."

She pulled out the pile of flags she'd put in her pocket and held them up.

"Our flag!" cheered the crew, "Good job Hawke!"

Jiro and Puzzle came over to join them.

"Hey!" Jiro exclaimed, "That's our flag!"

Hawke blinked as he tugged on the flag with the flame on it.

"Oh it is?" she smiled, "I just picked it up on a hunch."

She handed the fabric over to the boy and watched as he held it up proudly in front of his captain.

"The Phoenix Pirates are back!" Jiro shouted.

Hawke felt a touch on her hip and looked over to see Zoro at her side.

"Nice catch," he muttered, giving her a smirk.

Hawke smiled.

Then she looked up at the sky full of floating pirate flags.

"So many others who didn't get the chance…" she whispered.

"Don't let that bother you," Zoro muttered.

Hawke felt a tug on her hand and looked down to see the swordsman lifting the last flag she was holding.

"After all," he said, "You saved the one that mattered."

Hawke looked down at the Black Wing pirate flag.

"Yeah," she smiled.

"Alright!" shouted Sanji, "Since we've got our flag, we've no more business here!"

"Yeah!" shouted Usopp, "Let's get out of here!"

The crew sprinted out through the halls of the brightly coloured building and emerged out onto the ice.

Hawke looked around.

"Why is everything melting?" she asked.

Sure enough, the area that had been nothing but glaciers was now almost all sea.

"Doesn't matter!" Usopp called back to her, "Just hurry!"

The group ran out across what was left of the ice and stopped at the edge of a precipice.

"What's this?" Hawke heard Sanji mumble.

She quickly joined him at the edge and looked down.

"Lava?!" she exclaimed, "Where did that come from?!"

"Over there!" pointed Chopper.

The crew followed his hoof. There was a figure standing on something floating in the lava.

Hawke recognized the straw hat.

"Luffy!" snapped Zoro.

"What's he doing there?" muttered Usopp.

"Ooiiii!" shouted Chopper, waving his arms, "Luffy!"

Hawke started and quickly bent down to cover the reindeer's mouth.

"We can't let him see the flag out here," she whispered into Chopper's ear.

"He can't see us with it!" Usopp whispered frantically.

"The ship!" said Nami, pushing the others away from the edge, "We have to get to the ship!"

"Right," the others nodded and quickly retreated from the edge.

But as they were running away, they heard a voice calling from behind them.

"Oi guys! Wait up!"

Hawke looked over her shoulder and saw Luffy chasing after them.

"We've been spotted!" she gasped, "Go faster!"

Luffy was still shouting after them about the flag.

"We can't hear him! We can't hear him!" the crew began chanting as they sped across the ice.

They finally reached the edge of the iceberg they were on. The Sunny was floating a ways of shore. It seemed that Franky had gone ahead to prepare their vessel.

"We won't make it!" Usopp waild as Luffy closed the distance between them.

"Give me that!" panted Hawke as she grabbed the flag from the sniper's hands and promptly jumped off the iceberg.

She sped along the surface of the water and around the back of the Sunny as fast as her wings would take her, then flew up the mast and reattached the missing flag.

_We made it_, Hawke panted as she lowered herself towards the grass.

She sighed and leaned back on the mast.

"Nice work," Franky walked across the grass and gave her a thumbs up.

"We did it," she panted and gave him a smile.

They watched as Luffy caught up to the group on the ice and began shouting.

Then they saw Robin point towards the ship.

Hawke raised her head and watched their flag flying high in the breeze.

"A pirate flag is worth more than life to the crew," she sighed, "We made it just in time."

"That was close," the cyborg wiped the sweat off his forehead.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

That night they had a large feast. Luffy was extremely hungry after fighting Accino and he kept shoveling the food into his mouth.

"I'm sorry for doubting you guys," he spluttered between bites, "That stupid Family lied to me."

"Oh, don't mention it," Nami waved her hand.

"Yeah, forget about it," Sanji said as he put another plate of food down.

Hawke smiled.

"You can always count on us, Luffy," she said, averting her eyes from her brother's.

She felt a little guilty about having to lie to him, but it was for the best.

"Alright!" Luffy shouted, spewing bits of chewed food over the table, "To the New World!"

"Luffy! That's gross!" Nami punched the captain in the side of the head, "Don't talk with your mouth full!"

Hawke let out a laugh and raised her glass and with the others.

"To the New World!" they shouted.

Hawke felt a weight on her leg and looked down to see Zoro's hand resting on her thigh.

She looked up and smiled at him, scooting a little closer.

"We're on our way to our next adventure," she said happily as she began digging in to her own plate.

"Yeah," said Zoro in a low voice, "It's about time we stopped getting distracted."

Hawke giggled.

"The distractions are part of the fun," she smiled, "And they help us get stronger too."

The swordsman smirked and took a drink out of his mug.

"I suppose so," he gave a satisfied grunt as he leaned back against his chair, "And good job taking care of all those heat guys lackies."

Hawke smiled and turned her attention to the rest of the table.

Usopp, Chopper and Franky were all sticking chopsticks in their noses. Luffy was laughing with his full mouth wide open. Nami was looking disgusted while Robin seemed to be amused. And Sanji was giving the two women his attention. Though Hawke noticed that he kept shooting looks down her way, or maybe they were directed at Zoro.

Hawke let out a giggle and turned to whisper into Zoro's ear.

"I hope you weren't mean or anything to Sanji," she said, "He can't change the way he is."

The swordsman let out a huff.

"He needs to keep his pervy ass in line," he snapped.

Hawke smiled.

"You forget that he'll listen to whatever any woman says," she told him, going back to her food, "I can handle him. Plus he knows. He'll always act like a gentleman, but he knows now."

Zoro grunted.

"Stupid love-cook," he seethed under his breath.

Hawke reached out and tugged on his waist band.

"Don't get all angry," she said soothingly, "Just enjoy the feast."

Zoro looked down at her hand and she saw a smile flit across his lips.

"Fine," he said as he stood, "Then I'm going to need more beer."

Hawke laughed.

The rest of the night was spent dancing and laughing. The crew didn't get to bed until the early hours of the morning, with permission from Nami to sleep in the next day.

Zoro followed Hawke to the door of the girl's room.

"Sleep well," Hawke smiled as she readied to open the door, "We'll need a long rest after tonight."

She felt Zoro's hand on her waist, pulling her back.

"Goodnight," the swordsman muttered into her ear.

Hawke let her back be pressed against Zoro's chest and felt the warmth of his breath as it made her ear tingle.

"I'll see you in the morning," she whispered, bringing her hand up and reaching around, placing it on the back the swordsman's head.

"Yeah," Zoro grunted, but he didn't loosen his grip.

"Zoro," Hawke smiled as she turned herself around in his arms, "What are you worrying about?"

The green haired man stiffened and his face flushed a little.

"Nothing," he stammered, "I just wanted…"

Hawke felt herself blushing as she watched Zoro search for words. He looked extremely cute when he didn't know what to say.

"I just have this feeling…" he finally muttered.

"Relax," Hawke said, lifting her hand to his cheek, "There's no reason for you to worry about anything."

Zoro still looked worried, but he nodded his head.

Hawke stood on her tiptoes and placed a soft kiss on his cheek.

"Now get some rest," she said, "We sail for the New World tomorrow."

She felt Zoro's cheeks lift under her lips as he smiled.

"Yeah, goodnight," he said, "Sleep well."

He stepped back and gave her a small smirk before turning and heading off to the boys room.

Hawke sighed happily and opened the door. She quickly took off her jacket. Nami and Robin were still in the kitchen, so Hawke had the entire room to herself for now.

She sifted through the pockets of her jacket, pulling out the flag she had taken from Lovely Island.

"I wonder what happened to Salem," she muttered as her fingers traced over the outline of the crossed swords and then up around to the skull, "Did he get killed when the Accino took his flag? Or did he get handed over to the marines? Or did he escape?"

Hawke really wanted to know the answer. She wanted to know how far her ancestor had made it, and if he was still alive, or imprisoned somewhere.

Her fingers clenched the fabric in her hands.

"I'll find out, Salem," she muttered, "I'll find out what happened to you!"

She gently folded the flag and placed it up on the shelf in the closet.

"You'll be safe there for now," she yawned and then crawled back into bed.

_It's so warm_, she sighed as she snuggled up under the covers, feeling herself drifting off already

Hawke was already in a deep sleep when the other two women finally came in.

"Aren't they cute," Nami sighed as she gently pushed Hawke, who had been sprawled over the navigator's half, onto her own side of the bed.

Robin let out a soft giggle.

"Yes," she said quietly, "It seems that we have a pair of lovers on our crew."

The navigator let out a satisfying groan as she stretched out on the bed.

"As long as it doesn't distract them from doing their duties, its fine," she said, rolling over.

Robin let Nami settle before getting into bed herself.

"They both hold our captain in their highest concerns," the archeologist reached out to turn out the light, "I don't think we have to worry about that."


	41. Chapter 41: Thriller Bark

**Chapter 41**

**Thriller Bark**

Hawke flew over the fog covered island and shivered.

"This place is really creepy," she muttered, "Just like Brook's story."

They had met a talking skeleton on a ghost ship after becoming lost in a huge, thick fog bank. Hawke had been very scared of him when Luffy first brought him aboard the Sunny, especially when he had asked her the colour of her panties, but once they'd heard his story she had calmed down a bit. He still gave her the creeps though, she would have to give it a little more time before she was used to seeing those bones move by themselves.

But once Brook had told them of how he had lost his shadow Luffy immediately wanted to help him find it so that the skeleton could join the crew as their musician. And Hawke wanted to help Luffy recover that shadow so they could get another nakama.

She flapped her wings again and scanned the ground below her.

It was very hard to see through the fog, but the scout's sharp eyes made out a dense forest, and large, open, fields. She squinted and dropped in altitude.

_Those aren't fields!_ she gasped, _those are graveyards!_

She shivered and quickly flew over them and saw a shadow looming out of the fog in front of her.

Hawke shivered again as a large, decrepid castle and mansion came into view. There were no lights visible and the whole place looked abandoned.

"We should get out of here as fast as we can," she muttered.

Then she flew higher. Her goal was to get above the fog and try to find another island. But as she looked down again, she gasped and realized exactly what they had landed on.

A huge sail was barely visible through the fog behind the creepy castle!

"It's a ship!?" she gaped at the enormous floating vessel.

_Those teeth must have been what we came in through,_ she thought, scanning the large wall-like perimeter around the ship, the only opening was a large drawbridge-like system in the shape of a large mouth, _and there isn't another way out._

"Ugh!" she groaned as she flew back towards the Sunny, "Why did we have to sail into the Florian Triangle. Kokoro told us to be careful!"

She returned to the Sunny and reported what she had seen.

Of course this sparked Luffy's interest even more and he insisted that they go and explore the island-ship.

But Nami suggested, as a precaution, only some of the crew members go first. This led to her, Chopper and Usopp going off in the Mini-Merry.

After waiting for a long while, and the Sunny drifting into a large spiderweb, the rest of the crew were debating on leaving to explore for themselves. It was then that there was a sudden attack.

An invisible force suddenly grabbed Hawke's arms and began yanking her around the deck.

"Help!" she cried out in fear, twisting to try and free herself from whatever's grip she was in.

Hawke couldn't see anything around her, but something was putting pressure on her waist and she was thrown up against the rail.

She heard a sniffing noise and felt something tickle her neck.

"Something's got me!" she yelled, leaning as far back from the strange noises as possible.

"Stay still, Hawke," she heard Zoro growl.

The swordsman was standing in front of her. He could see the imprint of something in the fabric of her shirt on her stomach. He drew his sword and swiftly poked that area.

Hawke heard a hiss and then the pressure was lifted and she sank to the ground. There was a red stain on the tip of Zoro's sword.

"Are you alright?" the swordsman kneeled down and helped her up.

"I think so," Hawke panted, "Thanks."

But then they heard another cry and looked up to see Robin struggling with the same invisible entity.

"It's got me now!" the archeologist exclaimed, her arms raised defensively in front of her.

A wet streak appeard on Robin's neck. Franky threw a punch at the area in front of the archeologist. He didn't seem to hit anything, but the invisible thing stopped its attack.

"What was that?" the cyborg asked warily.

Everyone stood in silence, but there was no noise or movement.

They decided it was time to leave and explore the island, since it seemed that it was dangerous to stay on the ship.

They wandered through the forest Hawke had seen earlier, meeting a Cerberus and many other strange ghosts and creatures that Luffy tried to tame.

When they entered one of the large cemeteries, they were attacked by some lively zombies, but easily fought them off. They found a strange bat-like man who told them that the person taking peoples shadows was a Warlord named Gekko Moria, a dangerous man with a bounty even higher than Luffy's.

The group made their way to the mansion to meet a famous doctor that Chopper idolized and who apparently inhabited this island-ship. They had a strange dinner with him and his servant, Cindry, but then they were attacked by more zombies. During the battle, Hawke realized that Sanji had disappeared. And soon after, while they were making their way through the mansion halls, Zoro also disappeared without a sound.

This got Hawke extremely on edge and she became jumpy and panicky.

_He's just lost_, she thought, tryng to stop herself from imagining awful things happening to the swordsman.

But she didn't have much time to worry because they were soon set upon by many larger, tougher zombies. These ones seemed to be smarter than the others and dumped water on themselves when Franky blew fire on them. Luffy faced off with a strange zombie who knew how to use Zoro's sword techniques. And then he got captured by the zombies! Hawke fought hard, but she couldn't push past the zombies as her captain was carried away.

"Luffy!" Hawke shouted as her brother was carried off through a hole in the roof.

She prepared to jump up and bring out her wings, intent on following him.

But there was a sudden cry from behind her that drew her attention.

Hawke turned and saw the sword wielding zombie staring her down.

"I don't have time to fight you," she hissed as she blocked the zombie's first swing.

She lunged out with her knife and threw the zombie off balance and used the time it gave her to get out her sword.

"Aargh!" the zombie shouted as it launched its next attack, "Santoryu—"

Hawke froze.

"It's using Zoro's techniques again!" she muttered.

Her fingers clenched around her sword and she grit her teeth.

"What did you do to Zoro, monster!" she shouted angrily.

Hawke raised her weapon and charged at the zombie.

She brought her sword down hard but the zombie blocked her attack.

"I was given his shadow," sneered the zombie as he began his attacks on Hawke.

The scout struggled to defend herself.

She had been training with Zoro for a long time now, but he had never been going all out. Hawke knew she was still at a level far beneath the swordsman.

She deflected his last attack successfully, but she was panting hard and hadn't been able to make any attacks of her own.

"You stole his shadow?!" Hawke's eyes flashed.

She plunged her sword at the zombie again. This time she was fast enough and she sliced off one of the four arms the zombie's body had.

It paused for a moment before leering at her.

"Useless," it sneered as it picked up the fallen sword with its third arm and raised it.

"Damn," panted Hawke.

"And now you die," it said in a menacing voice.

The zombie came at her in a whirlwind.

Hawke parried and blocked, but she couldn't find an opening to use an attack, the blows were coming far too heavily.

She felt her arms beginning to tire.

_No!_ she thought, _I need to find out what happened to Zoro and why this thing has his shadow._

Hawke let out a scream as she gathered her strength and swung her sowrd out, trying desparately to break through the zombies attack.

And she was successful. Two of the zombie's swords were flung across the room, over the other zombies heads, and clattered to the floor.

Hawke smiled as she faced her opponent, thinking that now she had a chance.

But the zombie wasn't there.

Hawke blinked.

Then she gasped as she felt cold steel on her neck.

"I said you'll die now," said a cold voice from behind her.

Hawke felt her breath get caught in her throat.

The zombie was speaking in Zoro's voice. Zoro's voice had just told her to die!

She let out a sob as she whirled around and ducked, freeing herself from the blade.

The zombie blocked her swing easily and grabbed her by her collar.

"What a horrible weakness you humans have," the zombie sneered in Zoro's voice again.

Hawke glared at it as tears fell from her face.

"You give Zoro back right now!" she shouted, "Where is he?!"

The zombie ignored her and lifted its sword, placing the tip on her chest, over her heart.

Hawke raised her hands and gripped the blade, feeling it cut into her flesh.

_It's using his shadow_, she thought desperately, _maybe there's still a bit of him left._

"No, Zoro," she gasped frantically, "Don't. Please!"

At her words, something strange happened.

The zombie's body began to tremble.

Hawke stared at the blade. The zombie seemed to be wrestling with his arm. It would lower and then raise again, waving the blade in front of Hawke's chest.

"Go," the zombie's mouth opened.

The scout started and blinked.

That had been Zoro's voice. Not the zombie using Zoro's voice, but Zoro's actual voice!

"Go, Hawke," it said in Zoro's voice, "I won't let this piece of shit hurt you."

The arm was lowered and the sword was pointed towards the floor.

Hawke stared up at the blank face of the zombie for a moment.

Then she whirled around and tore past it and out to where Franky and Robin were.

_Thank you Zoro_, she thought, brushing tears out of her eyes, _don't worry, I'll get you and your shadow back safely._

She joined the other two and they ran to a large stone bridge, but then were blocked by a giant zombie monkey spider. Franky broke the bridge to keep the zombies from getting to them and Robin showed off her new wings technique to help carry Franky to safety. Hawke was quite impressed that the archeologist had managed to learn how to make wings so quickly.

They continued to fight the giant spider monkey, but weren't making any headway. Then Brook suddenly appeared, falling from the sky. He defeated the spider monkey with one blow and explained how zombies were made and that the zombies' one weakness is salt. He then gave each of them a bag of salt and ran off.

Hawke went to go back and purify the zombie that had Zoro's shadow, but the hall was deserted.

The three pirates decided to go back to the Sunny and look for their missing crew members along the way. They ran into Usopp and Chopper being attack by zombies and quickly helped their crewmates, purifying the zombies with the salt that Brook had given them.

After having defeated the zombies, they proceeded back to the Sunny to find it ransacked and Zoro, Sanji and Luffy unconscious and in very hilarious positions.

Hawke cried out in relief and happiness as she saw the black and green haired heads amid the various chopsticks and elastic bands.

Although Franky beat them almost to a pulp, they didn't wake up. Finally, Usopp got them to regain consiousnes by shouting "A beautiful lady swordsman has just arrived with a ton of meat!"

Hawke sighed at the bluntness of her brother and crewmates, but she was immensely glad that they were alright, except for their lack of shadows.

After explaining the situation to the three men, they all set out back to the island with the goal of taking down Moria. Sanji who, after being told by Usopp that Nami was getting married to the invisible man, burst into flames and swore he'd stop the wedding.

But before they could reach the mansion again, a giant larger than any they had ever seen fell from the sky. The giant, named Oars, didn't even notice them however, and they were able to continue into the castle.

They ran into a room and were confronted with a girl dressed in pink. She could summon hollows and shot them at the pirates. As a hollow went through Hawke, she felt all the happiness leave her.

"Just leave me," she groaned at the ground, having collapsed, "I'm to weak to be of any help."

But Usopp seemed to be unaffected by the negative hollows and he told the rest of them to run and leave the girl to him.

Hawke managed to regain her composure and took off, following Zoro, Sanji and Franky.

The cook left to look for Nami. Hawke followed Franky and Zoro and came to a room where Brook was battling a zombie swordsman who had Brook's shadow.

Zoro joined the fight, saying that he liked the zombie's sword and that he'd take it. Hawke watched the intense fight and it ended in Zoro's victory as he claimed his prize. And in the defeat of the samurai zombie, Brook got his shadow back.

As the four of them made their way through the castle, they met up with Usopp, Chopper, Robin and Sanji again.

Then the giant, Oars, appeared, saying he had to defeat them. The crew faced the giant and began fighting. He was a tough opponent, blocking all their individual attacks, and the salt seemed to have no effect on him because of his huge body size.

Franky tried to get them to participate in his "tactic fifteen", but Hawke and Robin refused to be a part of it and told him to never try it again.

However, working together was the only way they were going to make any headway and after a combined attack from all the crew members, they managed to fell the giant.

But, as he was a zombie filled with Luffy's shadow, he got right back up again.

They then met Moria himself, as he was inside Oars, controlling the giant from within, now that most of Luffy's spirit had gone out of him. The Warlord said that he'd return their shadows if they could beat him.

The fight that followed was very hard on Hawke. She was glad to see that Zoro's new sword was very powerful, giving his attacks a new ferocity. And she landed a few choice blows at the leg and arm joints of the giant. But as she lept up to make an attack in Oars' face, the giant struck her down.

Hawke gasped in pain as her body was slammed into the rocky rubble at the giant's feet. She saw black spots swimming in her vision and her breath was knocked out of her.

She saw Oars lift his foot and position it over her.

_He's going to squash me!_ She realized and tried to get up.

Her body wouldn't move, she couldn't move her legs!

Fortunately, there was a flash of lightning and Hawke recognized Nami's climatact attack. The hit made Oars loose his balance and gave Zoro enough time to swoop in and lift Hawke to safety.

"Are you okay?" the swordsman asked worriedly, glancing behind him at the still wobbling giant.

Hawke was still trying to gasp for air.

"I can't- can't move my- my legs," she managed to get out.

The swordsman's eyes widened in alarm and he called Chopper over.

After examining her, the doctor was relieved to say that nothing was broken and that her nerves were just suffering from the impact.

"You'll be able to move again soon," the reindeer informed her, bending her knees for her.

Zoro nodded and turned to rejoin the fight.

Brook, Nami, Usopp, Robin and Franky launch a new combo move and managed to throw Oars off balance. This gave Zoro an opening to land a direct hit, giving the giant visible damage.

Hawke could only watch helplessly as Brook was taken down and Robin's shadow was taken from her, causing her to faint. Sanji protected the unconscious archeologist and Chopper found Oars' weak spot. They landed a heavy blow on the giant's knee and elbow, but were both hit by Oars' counter attack.

Hawke thought that they were about to be defeated, but that's when Luffy showed up.

He was large, muscular and blue, but she was positive it was Luffy.

She began getting some feeling back in her legs as this monster Luffy began beating the pulp out of Oars and Moria. He seemed to have defeated them when Oars collapsed and remained down.

Hawke pulled herself up, leaning against a large piece of rubble, as a large group of pirates appeared and began cheering.

But then, Oars got back up. Hawke took a step and found that she had almost all control of her legs again. She quickly jumped back into the fray.

The crew pulled together to try one last finishing attack. Robin helped Brook carry Luffy up to the top of the castle and Hawke and the others immobilized Oars and straightened his back. Luffy activated his third gear attack and crushed Oars with the velocity he gathered from falling from the castle. The blow broke the giant's back and made him unable to move his body.

But before they could celebrate, Moria emerged from Oars' body and absorbed all the shadows on Thriller Bark, turning into a giant monster.

Luffy repeatedly hit Moria in the stomach, causing him to lose control of the shadows and for some to escape from the Warlords mouth. Luffy's finishing move cause Moria to be thrown against Thriller Bark's mast. The force dislodge it and the huge cement pillar collapsed on its own captain. The force on the blow made Moria release all the shadows and they flew off to rejoin with their owners. And just in time too, because the sun was rising. Luffy shrunk into his mini-self and fell unconscious.

Hawke knew he had used the last of his strength in that attack. She stumbled over to her brother, falling to her knees beside him.

"Luffy…" she whispered as she placed her hand on his forehead.

Just then, the large mast cracked right where they were standing, letting the light of the rising sun shine onto them.

"Zoro! Luffy!" Hawke screamed as Luffy's body began to disintegrate before her eyes, "Sanji! Robin!"

The light had hit the pirates where they stood and the top halves of their bodies were already gone.

She looked on in horror as Zoro's waist band began to disappear.

"Zoro!" she shouted, her heart hammering.

But the shadows seemed to have been released at just the right time. Before their bodies could disintegrate any further, they were suddenly reconstructed.

Hawke stared in amazement as Zoro let out a laugh.

"I seem to be alive," he stated, flexing his arm.

Hawke looked down to the unconcious Luffy. His body had also returned to normal.

"Oh, I'm so glad," Hawke held her face in her hands, "You're all okay."

She felt the fear and terror in her chest die out, only to be replaced a spark of anger.

She whirled around and pointed at Zoro.

"Don't you do that ever again!" she shouted, "You're not allowed to disappear!"

The swordsman looked a little taken aback, as did the rest of the crew, but then he gave her a reassuring smile.

"I wouldn't dream of it," he smirked.

The slight anger born of fear fizzled out and Hawke let a tired smile lift her lips.

But again, they couldn't celebrate for long.

The Tyrant, Bartholomew Kuma appeared out of nowhere and said he had orders to revive Moria and kill all those who'd witnessed his defeat. He began attacking Zoro with strange balls of compressed air. The balls had enough force to blow through many layers of rock and wiped out half another pirate crew, who had just gotten their shadows back.

After making an attempt, along with Sanji and Usopp, to attack Kuma and draw his attention away from Zoro, Hawke realized that they had made no impact on the other Warlord. His skin was harder than steel! Her knives couldn't pierce through and she still couldn't get stable on her feet. They were in trouble…

As the crew lay defenseless around him, Kuma compressed a large amount of air into a bomb. He said he would let them live if they handed Luffy over to the World Government.

At their blatant refusal, he let the bomb go off.

Hawke was blown back from the force of it and slammed into a piece of rubble.

_Luffy! Zoro!…,_ she tried to cry out as her vision tunneled and she fell into darkness.


	42. Chapter 42: The Aftermath

**Chapter 42**

**The Aftermath**

Hawke woke up slowly.

She recognized Luffy's voice and heard his happy exclamations.

_Good,_ she sighed, _he's okay._

Slowly rolling onto her back, she sat up with a groan. Her body hurt all over. She quickly checked her legs, and, to her relief, they were moving at her command.

She glanced over and saw that the rest of the crew was awake and gathered around Luffy on a flater pile of rubble.

Hawke blinked.

Luffy was up, jumping around and saying how he felt perfectly fine!

_Maybe he got hit to hard and his nerves gave out_, she thought, _like mine did._

Hawke stood up and limped towards the group. Then she saw that Zoro wasn't there, neither was Sanji.

She looked around and saw the chef running through the rubble.

Hawke immediately got a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach.

_Where's Zoro?_ she thought and began following Sanji.

As she walked, her foot hit something on the ground, causing a clatter.

She looked down.

Zoro's swords were lying at her feet.

"His swords…" the feeling in her stomach got ten-times worse, "Why would he leave his swords?!"

She ignored her pain and tore after Sanji, jumping through the rubble.

The cook headed to an area far away from the castle, close to the border of the forest.

Hawke saw him disappear over a large slab of stone, then she heard his voice.

"Oi! There you are! Where'd that Warlord go?"

Her heart beat quickened and she sped up.

She reached the top of the slab and looked down.

Her breath caught in her throat, blocking a scream that desperately wanted to tear from her lips.

There was blood everywhere! The rocks and rubble were all covered in red. And in the middle of the carnage stood Zoro.

"What in the hell is with all that blood?!" She heard Sanji's voice echoing through her brain.

_Zoro…_ her thoughts struggled to make sense, _what did you do, Zoro…?_

"ZORO!" her voice ripped from her throat without her permission.

She saw Sanji stiffen and look over his shoulder at her.

"Its okay, Hawke-san," he called, "The idiots here."

Then he turned back to the swordsman.

"Oi… are you still alive!? Where is that guy?" the cook asked frantically, "What happened here?!"

Hawke felt her feet sliding down the stone slab, her legs moving on their own.

"ZORO!" she screamed again, pain, fear and anguish all pouring out in an uncontrollable flood.

She ran up beside Sanji and took in the ripped and tattered clothes, the blood seeping from wounds she couldn't even see, the dark, sunken eyes that stared ahead, unseeing.

_No…_ was the only thought that filled Hawke's mind.

She felt her heart stop beating.

"No!" she let out a hoarse whisper.

Then the bloodied body in front of her shifted slightly.

"Absolutely… nothing… happened," the swordsman growled between breaths.

Her heart reanimated, beating furiously. She could hear the blood rushing in her ears.

"Zoro!" she cried, tears falling uncontrollably down her face, "You're alive!"

She saw Sanji standing beside her.

"Sanji!" she stammered through her tears, "Get Chopper! Now!"

The cook nodded and quickly sped back the way they had come.

Hawke tore a piece of her shirt off and began wiping the blood oozing down his face.

"Zoro…" she gasped, her fear and pain clearly ringing in her voice, "What did you do? Why are you so injured?"

The swordsman's eyes seemed to focus on her for a moment.

"Is... he… gone?" he panted, his legs visibly shaking.

Hawke guessed he meant Sanji and she nodded.

"Yes, Sanji's gone to get Chopper," she stammered, trying to calm herself, "Now don't talk or you'll—"

Zoro suddenly began falling forward.

Hawke quickly caught him and lowered him to his knees.

She looked into his eyes, she could tell he was struggling to stay conscious.

"Hawke…" he began panting again, "It… hurts…"

The scout's eyes widened and she quickly pulled the swordsman in. Cradling his head against her chest, still wiping the blood away from his eyes.

"Don't worry, Zoro," she whispered frantically, trying to keep her voice calm, "Chopper and I will fix you up. I'll make sure the pain goes away."

She heard the swordsman make a grunting noise, then felt his body collapse.

Keeping her hands as steady as she could, she gently laid Zoro down on the ground.

The white cloth from her shirt was already soaked through with blood and she threw it aside. She looked down and saw that the rest of her shirt was now covered in red also.

"Zoro…" she whimpered, "You're gunna be okay… its okay... everythings going to be okay."

She was talking more for herself, trying to quell the rising fear and pain that was threatening to spill out of her chest.

Just then, she heard Chopper's footsteps approaching and turned to see the reindeer coming down the slab.

"Zoro!" the doctor exclaimed.

He immediately got to work on stopping the swordsman's bleeding.

The scout sat back, watching with glazed eyes as the reindeer worked on Zoro. Her mind was swimming and her arms hung limp beside her. She had thought that Zoro had been dead… just for a moment. But in that moment, her world had stopped spinning, her heart had broken into a thousand pieces.

She stared down at Zoro, his wounds continued to bleed and his skin became very pale.

_And now I could lose him for real!_ she thought, her hands shaking.

"Hawke!" Chopper said seriously, bringing her slowly out of her thoughts, "This is no time to let your feelings take over! You have to be strong and steady if you want to help Zoro get better."

The scout heard his words and felt herself calm down a bit.

_Chopper's right_, she told herself as she mechanically helped the doctor with the bandages, _Zoro needs your attention. You told him you'd help make him better!_

Franky made a stretcher and brought it over and they carried Zoro into a nearby building. One of the only ones that was still standing.

There, Hawke kept a constant watch over the swordsman. She felt relieved once Chopper had said he had stabilized, but she couldn't bring herself to leave Zoro's bedside.

Luffy was feeling better than any of them, which was really strange, but it meant that Hawke didn't have to worry about him.

The rest of the crew went back to retrieve their food and supplies from the Sunny and brought them to the building.

Usopp came over and asked how Zoro was doing.

"I've never seen him take so much damage before," Chopper said, a worried look on his face, "I'm sure something happened when we were all unconscious."

Hawke's eyes narrowed and she watched Zoro's chest rise and fall with his breath.

"But what happened?" she muttered.

"We can tell ya!" a sudden exclamation was heard.

Hawke looked up to see some of the other pirates that had had their shadows returned standing there.

"Want us to tell ya?" they asked.

Just then, Sanji grabbed them by their collars and dragged them outside.

"Sanji?" Hawke asked.

She really wanted to know what had happened.

But she turned her attention back to Zoro.

_I guess it doesn't really matter,_ she thought, _as long as he's okay_.

Hawke sat unmoving for a few moments, then Robin came to sit beside her.

"I just overheard what happened," the archeologist said quietly into her ear, "Would you like me to tell you?"

Hawke's eyes widened and she nodded vigorously.

Robin leaned closer and whispered the events that had transpired between Kuma, Sanji and Zoro after the Warlord had blown them away with his air bomb.

As Hawke heard the truth about how Zoro had laid down his life for Luffy, her fists clenched and her face became serious.

"Are you alright?" Robin asked as she saw the scout's reaction.

Hawke nodded silently and turned back to Zoro. She reached out and took his hand in hers.

The archeologist watched as the scout maintained her silent vigil, even when Sanji prepared a feast and the party began, Hawke didn't move from her seat, or even glance up, as the noise level began to rise.

Robin brought over some cakes for Chopper and some food for Hawke.

"Even with all this noise," said Chopper between mouthfuls, "He's still sleeping."

"Well he's a man who can sleep through anything, after all," Hawke gave a faint smile and took a small bite form her plate. Her other hand still tightly clasped with the swordsman's.

Sanji came over and put a hand on Hawke's shoulder.

"You shouldn't worry so much over the stupid moss head, Hawke-san," he said with tenderness, "He'll wake up soon and go back to being the usual idiot that he is."

Hawke looked up and gave the cook a small smile.

"I just want to make sure he's okay," she said quietly, taking another bite, "Your food is really good Sanji, thank you."

Sanji fawned over her at this compliment, but then Luffy came over carrying a large barrel of beer.

"It's for Zoro!" the captain exclaimed.

He held the barrel over the swordsman's head.

"Drink up and get better!" Luffy laughed.

"What the hell!" Nami smacked the captain on the head.

"Zoro loves this stuff!" Luffy complained as he rubbed his head, "It'll make him feel better!"

"Just leave him alone, Luffy," Hawke said quietly, "Zoro just needs rest. He can drink when he wakes up."

Her brother gave her a worried look, but luckily Brook began playing the piano and this drew Luffy's attention.

Brook was playing Bink's Sake. Hawke recognized it from the many times Shanks and his crew had sung it when she was helping Makino in the bar.

"This brings back memories, doesn't it Luffy?" she smiled.

But the captain was already on top of the piano, talking to the musical skeleton.

She smiled and turned back to Zoro.

"You're both idiots," she sighed and squeezed his hand.

She found herself joining in on the song though, and felt her spirits lifting as the Strawhats and the other pirates threw themselves fully into celebrating.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Hawke woke with a start.

_I don't remember falling asleep,_ she thougth groggily as she rubbed her eyes.

It had been two days since Luffy had defeated Moria. In that time, Zoro hadn't woken up. Hawke had spent almost all her time at his bedside, only leaving once to write a small letter detailing their zombie fights and Nami's wedding adventure and sending it off to Water 7 on the foot of a vulture she'd found in the forest.

_After all_, she thought_, I did promise to write to Caracass and Hayato. I just left out all the Warlord stuff._

Hawke stretched her arms and back, then she looked down at the empty bed in front of her.

"Oh so he's up now, is he?" she yawned.

Then she froze.

"Zoro's awake!?" she stammered, jumping up.

Robin was sitting at a table behind her.

"Yes," the archeologist gave a small laugh, "He woke up a few hours 'd only just fallen asleep, so we didn't want to wake you."

Hawke stood.

"Thank you for letting me sleep," she said solemnly, "But I would have liked it if you'd woken me! Where did he go?"

Robin smiled and pointed towards the door.

"He said he was going to say goodbye to his old friend," she said.

Hawke thought for a moment before she realized that he meant his sword.

"Okay, thanks," the scout called over her shoulder as she went out the door.

Robin watched after her and smiled.

Hawke quickly searched the cemeteries around the island. Thriller Bark had long since exited the Florian Triangle and the skies remained clear and blue.

She heard the soft, crooning sound of Brook's violin floating through the air and followed it to a small section of the cemetery.

Usopp, Franky and Chopper had helped make a large grave for the Rumbar Pirates, Brook's old crew, who had all died after being poisoned. The skeleton was sitting in front of it, and beside him, was Zoro.

Hawke felt her heart squeeze tightly as she saw the swordsman's back. His head was bowed and his hands were clasped out in front of him. She caught sight of a katana, stuck deep into the ground near the grave.

"Saying goodbye," she sighed and waited a while, letting the two men pay their respects.

Then they stood and caught sight of her standing by the entrance gate.

Hawke waved and approached the grave. She gave it a small bow, then turned to the sword and did the same.

As she raised her head, she saw that both men were watching her. A tight knot formed in her chest.

"Brook," she said quietly, "Would you excuse us for a moment?"

"Ah," the skeleton tipped his hat, "Of course."

Hawke waited until he was out of sight before turning to Zoro.

"So you're feeling better?" she asked in a tense voice.

Zoro seemed to sense that something was off.

"Yeah," he said warily, "Just overslept a bit…"

Hawke's fists clenched and her eyes flashed. Her worrying and stress were being warped into anger.

She took a step towards the swordsman and raised her hand threateningly, ready to strike.

Zoro stumbled back.

"What?!" he snapped.

"How dare you!" shouted Hawke, her hand still held in the air, "How dare you do such a thing!"

Zoro stared.

Hawke could feel her body begin to shake with all the emotions she'd been keeping pent up ever since she'd found out what had really happened.

"How dare you offer up your life!" she screamed, "Is it so easy to leave us?! Is it so easy to give your life away?!"

Zoro looked terrified. His mouth was open, but no words were coming out.

Hawke took another step towards him, her hand still at the ready. But as she looked at the swordsman, standing tall, awake and alive, she felt tears coming to her eyes.

"Do you know what that would have done to us?!" she could feel her anger dissolving away, "Did you even think about what that would do to Luffy?!"

Her arm fell limply to her side, tears flowing freely down her face.

"Did you even think about what that would do to me?" she whispered.

Zoro had been standing petrified, but as she'd spoken those last words, he seemed to regain his composure.

"Listen, Hawke…" he started, taking a step closer to her.

But the scout didn't let him finish. She thrust herself forward, burying her face in his shoulder, and began bawling her eyes out.

"I thought you had died!" she sobbed, "I thought I was never going to see you again!"

She lifted her face out of his shirt and looked up at him.

"My heart broke," she whimpered, "Just for that moment… it broke."

Zoro was looking down at her with an almost serene expression on his face.

Hawke took a step back and gave him a questioning look, a constant stream of tears still staining her cheeks.

"I knew I wasn't going to die," the swordsman said quietly, "There was someone here I couldn't leave… I was ordered not to disappear."

Hawke's eyes widened.

"You idiot!" she snapped and returned her face to his shirt, soaking it through with her tears.

But as his arms wrapped around her, she felt happiness well up in her chest.

Zoro was safe, he was okay!

"Hey, Hawke?" she heard Zoro's voice and pulled herself out of his embrace.

"Yeah?" she whispered.

"Thanks for taking care of me," the swordsman blushed and rubbed the back of his head, looking at the ground.

Hawke felt a smile spread across her face.

"That's what I'm here for," she said warmly, taking his hand, "Just make sure you don't do anything stressful for a while okay? Those wounds are still really bad. Technically you should still be in bed. And thank Chopper, he did most of the work."

Zoro gave her a smirk and squeezed her fingers.

"Maybe," he said as they made their way back towards the Sunny, "But I don't know if I would have made it if you weren't there."

He squeezed her hand.

Hawke blinked.

"How do you know…?" she asked confusedly.

Another smirk.

"I could feel it," he gave another squeeze.

Hawke blushed and turned her face away.

"Well," she stammered, "I just wanted to make sure you could feel something. I thought it might make you feel better…"

"It did."

Zoro suddenly jerked to a stop and spun her around to face him. He leaned down and pressed his lips against hers.

Hawke gasped and pulled her face away.

The swordsman looked startled and worried. But Hawke smiled and stepped forwards again, this time, her lips closed on his and stayed there.

Hawke felt her heart fluttering and she could hardly breathe.

_We're kissing!_ She thought, elated.

Zoro's lips felt rough against her own, but they were gentle as he pulled back for a breath and then dove back for her lips again.

Hawke began feeling hot and was sure it had nothing to do with the bright sun above them.

She pulled away and stepped back.

"Really, Zoro," she giggled, "You're supposed to be resting and not getting your heart rate up."

The swordsman smirked and grabbed her waist, pulling her close and resting his chin on her shoulder.

"You worry too much," he said softly into her hair.

Hawke wrapped her arms around him and smiled, taking a deep breath and just enjoying this moment.

Suddenly they heard some shouts in the distance.

"Oii! Zoro! Hawke! We're getting ready to go you two!"

Nami's voice called out to them.

"And you better not be doing anything pervy out there!"

Hawke felt the heat coming off her face as the swordsman pulled away.

"She didn't need to add that last part," she blushed in embarrassment and shuffled her feet.

Zoro flashed her a real smile and laughed.

Hawke felt her heart soaring up into the clear blue sky and she laughed too.

The pair of them walked the rest of the way to the Thousand Sunny in a comfortable silence.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

"Now that Zoro is better!" Luffy shouted, "Set sail! On to our next adventure!"

"We're going to see the Mermaids!" Sanji floated by with hearts in his eyes.

Hawke rolled her eyes and went over to help Nami carry the last bags of treasure onto the ship.

As they finished Lola, the captain of the other pirate crew came over and handed Nami a piece of paper.

"Here," Lola said, "It's my mama's vivre card. I'm sure it'll come in handy for you later."

"Vivre card?" Hawke asked looking at the paper curiously.

"Lola-sama," one of the pirates called, "They only make vivre cards in the New World!"

"Oh, that's right!" exclaimed Lola.

Then she proceeded to tell them about vivre cards and how they worked. Since Lola was from the New World and they were going to the New World, she thought they might run into her mother, who was a strong pirate.

"She could help you out, if you needed it," Lola said, "And if you see her, tell her I'm doing fine."

"Will do," smiled Nami.

Just then Luffy came over.

"I think I have one of those," he said, taking off his hat and fishing something out of its band.

"Huh?" Hawke asked, "When did you get a vivre card?"

"Didn't your brother give it to you back in Alabasta?" asked Nami.

"Ace?" Hawke asked eagerly.

Luffy held up the vivre card.

"Oh," he said, "It's burning and getting smaller."

"Wait!" shouted Lola, "Let me see that!"

Luffy held the card out to her.

"This paper represents the life force of its owner," Lola said nervously, "I'm sorry to say this, but this person's life is vanishing…"

Hawke and Luffy stared.

"What?!" Hawke exclaimed.

Luffy looked shocked.

"Ace," he mumbled.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Hawke waved happily from the rail as they set sail out of Thriller Bark.

Luffy was sitting on the rail next to her.

"Hey, Luffy," she said quietly as they turned their attention to the sea ahead of them, "Are you sure this is okay?"

Luffy glanced over at her.

"Oh, Ace's paper, right?" he put his hand on his hat, "Its fine, don't worry about it."

Hawke gave him a sympathetic look.

"I'm sure everyone won't mind if we took a little detour," she said, "And if that paper burning is like Ace's life…"

"Nah," Luffy smiled, "It's really fine. Even if he was in some kind of pinch, he wouldn't want me worrying about him. Ace hates being made to look weak the most. If we went to help him, he'd just get pissed off."

Hawke smiled, pushing her worry out of her mind.

"So when we meet him again," she asked, "It'll be as enemy pirates?"

Luffy nodded.

"Ace has his own adventure to lead," he said, taking a mug from the tray Sanji was passing around.

"Thank you, Sanji," Hawke smile and took her own mug.

"Oh yeah, Zoro!" Luffy called across the deck, "You were sleeping the whole time so you missed out."

"Well then let's do it again," laughed Usopp and raised his mug, "In celebration of our new nakama, Musician Brook, joining the crew!"

The crew raised their mugs.

"Kanpai!"

"Much obliged," called the skeleton.

"Yosh!" shouted Luffy, "Let's get outta here with a coup de burst!"


	43. Chapter 43: Sabaody Archipelago

**Chapter 43**

**Sabaody Archipelago**

After leaving Thriller Bark, the Strawhats sailed towards Fishman Island. But they ended up at the Sabaody Archipelago, the last stop before the Red Line. They had reached their halfway mark! Once they saw this piece of land again, they would have conquered the Grand Line!

Along the way, they picked up a mermaid named Caimie and her starfish friend Pappug by saving them from being swallowed by a seaking and from being kidnapped by the Flying Fish Gang. They also ended up saving Caimie's friend Hatchan, who turned out to know Nami and the other early members of the crew as he had been part of a gang that had kept the navigator's home island hostage.

Despite this, they agreed to let him sail with them and he said he could get them a good person to coat their ship. Since the only way they could cross the Red Line without the marines noticing was to dive down under it, to Fishman Island, they had to get a special coating around their ship so they could sail underwater.

As the crew readied to go onshore, Hawke put most of her knives and her sword in their harnesses on her wings. She wanted to keep everything on her, and she kept two knives out and put the letter from Salem into her jacket pocket, just in case. Nami had wanted to get Hawke to carry some extra money, but Hawke had told her that it ould be really hard for her to access her wings with a lot of people around. So the navigator had decided against it.

After landing at Sabaody, the crew made their way to a little bar owned by a woman named Shakky, where Hatchan said they would find the man to coat the Sunny. It turned out the man wasn't there, so the crew set off to find him. Unfortunately Caimie got kidnapped and was taken to a Human Auction House to be sold off as a slave to the rich Celestial Dragons.

The crew tried to bid on Caimie in order to rescue her without any violence, but a Noble outbid them. Luffy ended up causing a scene when a Noble shot Hatchan and their captain punched the offending Celestial Dragon in the face. This threw the entire auction house into chaos. Hawke wasn't sure how it happened, but Caimie was rescud by a man with white hair and a beard.

As a result of Luffy punching a Celestial Dragon, the whole auction house was already surrounded by marines, but the crew managed to escape, along with Caimie and the new mystery man, with the Flying Fish Riders, who were now their friends.

They made their way back to Shakky's bar and discovered that the man who had saved Caimie was actually Silvers Rayleigh, the Dark King, who'd been Gold Roger's first mate. And he told them the true story behind Roger's execution and that they had found out the True History. Robin had begun to ask him to tell her the History, but then decided to find it out for herself, giving Hawke a small smile.

Rayleigh said he would be the one to coat their ship, though it would take three days.

Luffy agreed and thanked Rayleigh for his help before saying that they should split up and have fun for the three days they had to wait.

Hawke waited at the door as the crew began to leave. She turned back towards the man at the bar.

"Rayleigh-san?" she asked timidly.

"Yes, Sharp Eyes?" the Dark King raised his eyebrow at her.

Hawke fidgeted with her sleeve. It was really intimidating, being in the presence of a man who'd conquered the Grand Line, a man who knew the True History!

She took a breath.

"Do you know of a man named Salem?" she asked, "And his friend Caracass?"

Rayleigh's eyes widened and he sat back down on his stool.

"Well those are names I haven't heard for a long time," he said quietly, picking up his glass.

He took a sip and eyed Hawke.

"Is he doing well?" he asked.

Hawke shook her head.

"I haven't met him," she said apologetically, "But I was told that he was part of your crew up until Water 7. I met Caracass when we were in that city, actually."

The Dark King paused in his drinking.

"He left his bird behind?" he sounded almost unbelieving.

Hawke nodded, going over and shyly sitting down at the bar.

"Caracass had an accident and lost his left wing and eye," she said, "I guess Salem didn't think he should take him along at sea. He left him there in the care of a mechanic named Hayato."

Rayleigh gave her a long stare.

"It's a shame he left when he did," the man looked down into his glass, "He was dead set on finding out the True History, kept going on about how it was his destiny. And we were the ones that ended up finding it…"

Hawke gave Rayleigh a sympathetic look.

"I think Salem had a change of heart," she said quietly, "He went off to research something that he thought would help to find the History."

The Dark King raised his eyebrow.

Hawke reached into her jacket and slowly took out the letter.

"This is the last letter he wrote back to Caracass," she said, unfolding it and holding it out to Rayleigh.

The man took it and read the paper.

Hawke saw his hand clench the letter a little tighter.

"Do you know what he was looking into?" he asked her suddenly.

Hawke blinked.

"No," she admitted, "But we're heading to Fishman Island, so I was hoping to find the person he mentioned there. The one who could see into the future!"

Rayleigh gave her a serious stare.

Hawke shifted nervously as the silence went on.

Then the man thrust the letter back to her.

"I think if you read this again," he said, "You will find that Salem has already told you."

Hawke's eyes widened and she took the letter back, scanning the words quickly.

"He's already told me?" she muttered as she read, "But how could he?"

Then her eyes fell upon a word.

_Unsavoury…_

She stared at it.

_Why is it capitalized?_ She wondered.

Then her eyes picked out another word.

_Research…_

That shouldn't be capitalized either!

Hawke scanned through the letter again, picking out all the unnecessarily capitalized words.

"Unsavoury… Research…Answers…Need…Understand…Soon…" she muttered, "Does he mean for me to understand his research?"

Then she looked at the letters themselves.

"U…R…A…N…U…S…," She blinked, "Uranus? What does that mean?"

She looked up at Rayleigh, who had been watching her figure it out.

"It's the name of an ancient weapon," the man said somberly, "One of three weapons so dangerous, they could destroy the world."

Hawke stared.

"He was researching a weapon?!" she stammered, "Like Pluton?"

Then she looked back down to the letter.

"How didn't I figure that out before!?" she berated herself, remembering Robin's reaction to reading the letter, "She must think I'm stupid,' she mumbled.

"I think its best that you didn't find out until now," Rayleigh said slowly.

Hawke raised her head.

"It's dangerous to research the ancient weapons," the Dark King said, "And also extremely difficult since the only records of them are found on poneglyphs. I don't know why Salem was looking into the weapon… But it is up to you to do what you think is right with this information."

Hawke frowned.

Salem had wanted to help the one who followed him… but how was a weapon going to help her?

_Maybe its best if I just think about this some more_, she thought, _this is starting to get dangerous._

She bowed her head to Rayleigh.

"Thank you, Rayleigh-san," she said, "But I think I will do nothing, for now."

She heard a chuckle and looked up to see the Dark King smiling down at her.

"This is quite the crew," he laughed and drained his glass.

Hawke hesitated before asking her next question.

"Rayleigh-san? Would you have told Robin the True History if she had asked?"

The man laughed.

"No," he said, "But her refusing the answer and wanting to find her own way… I think that is the only way you can find the truth with your own eyes. You may come a different conclusion than we did."

He gave Hawke another long stare.

"Salem was sure that he was the foretold Dark Angel," he said quietly, "Do you know of that prophecy?"

Hawke blinked and nodded her head nervously.

"He wasn't," Rayleigh went on, "The Dark Angel has shown himself now, in Alabasta, if the Navy is to be believed. But if the Dark Angel has truly appeared, I think you and your crew should seek him out. Then, I believe, you would have a great deal of fortune on your side. Though good or bad remains to be seen."

Hawke felt her cheeks flush.

She debated telling Rayleigh about her true identity, but decided against it.

_And he just said that it would be a good thing for Luffy to have the Dark Angel on his crew,_ she smiled.

Rayleigh caught this and raised his eyebrow.

Just then they heard Luffy's voice calling up to them.

"Oi, Hawke! Where are you! Let's go to the amusement park!"

Hawke smiled and stood up. Rayleigh followed her and they exited the bar, joining the crew waiting at the bottom.

"I'll get to work right away," Rayleigh shouldered a large bag of tools, "Take this vivre card. I'll need to move your ship, so after three days, just follow this back to where it ends up."

The crew each took a piece of the vivre card.

"Alright!" shouted Luffy, "Let's go to the amusement park now!"

Everyone cheered and headed out into the Archipelago.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

To everyone's surprise and shock, as they made their way into the grove in order to hide, the Warlord Bartholomew Kuma appeared, blocking their path!

The crew tensed as they faced off with the paw man.

As they began to attack, Hawke soon realised that this Kuma was different, he shot lasers instead of shockwaves.

He quickly targeted Luffy and began bombarding the captain with laser beams.

The crew was scattered as they tried to avoid being hit. Hawke watched form the sidelines with Robin, Nami and Chopper as the Monster Trio took on Kuma. They hit him with three simultaneous attacks and he went rocketing backwards.

"Did they get him?" asked Nami excitedly.

"Their opponent is a warlord," said Robin quietly.

"He won't go down that easily," muttered Hawke, "I can tell by their expressions."

_That's no good_, Hawke thought, seeing Kuma's shadow emerging from the rubble,_ the guys are barely able to stand as it is!_

As the men continued to fight, Hawke saw a large gash appear on Kuma's shoulder, revealing wires and machinery.

"He's a robot!" she exclaimed, "That's not actually Kuma!"

Just then, the robot faced Zoro, preparing a lazer attack from its mouth. Zoro stood frozen, clenching his side.

"His wounds still haven't healed!" Hawke gasped in horror, "Zoro!"

She made to run into the clearing, but Robin held her back.

"No, Hawke!" the archeologist exclaimed, "You can't go out there!"

Just then, the laser fired. But Zoro seemed to have been able to jump out of the way just in time.

He fell onto the ground, still holding his side. Hawke could tell, even from this distance, that he was in a lot of pain.

"He's so badly injured that he can't move!" she cried, shaking off Robin's hand and running out to the swordsman.

"Zoro!" she gasped as she made it to his side.

He rolled over and got up onto his hands and knees, but the effort caused him to cough up blood onto the ground.

"We have to get you out of here," Hawke said, wildly scanning the area for ways of escape, "Let Luffy and Sanji take care of that guy!"

Just then, the rest of the crew arrived and took up their places surrounding the robot Kuma.

Hawke helped Zoro to his feet and took out her knives. She could tell everyone was already out of breath. What were they going to do!?

_It's a good thing I kept these two out of my wings,_ she thought.

Hawke heard a clink from beside her and turned to see Zoro stepping out to face the Warlord.

"Zoro!" she shouted, "Don't-!"

Just then Chopper intervened, attacking the robot with his arm point, then Franky tag teamed him in and began pummeling Kuma with his metal fists.

But this robot Kuma was not to be underestimated. He threw Franky off and sensed Brook as the musician dove down on him from above.

Brook's sword sank into Kuma's shoulder, but then stuck.

Hawke saw that the skeleton was going to be blasted away, so she jumped in to attack, slicing the exposed neck of the robot as it looked up at Brook.

She managed to stop its laser from charging and exposed the wires under his skin.

"What is this guy?!" she shouted as she jumped back to safety.

Usopp launched a barrage of firestars at their enemy and Nami hit him right through with her thunderlance tempo.

"Let's go!" shouted Usopp, "It's time to run!"

Their attacks seemed to have short-circuited the robot and he began firing off lasers all over the place.

The crew followed Usopp's suggestion and ran for their lives, trying to dodge the lasers.

Hawke looked back and saw Zoro and Sanji going in for the kill.

_No, Zoro_, she thought and skidded to a halt, _your body can't take much more!_

The two hit Kuma with their attacks and his body finally started to fall apart. Luffy lept out and finished the job with his gear third giant fist.

Hawke ran over and caught her brother's body as it shrank and fell.

"Good job, Luffy!" she gasped triumphantly.

The crew took a breather, they were all feeling beat.

"Who the hell was that guy?" Zoro panted.

"He's definitely a modified human," Franky said, "He's a human who looks just like Bartholomew Kuma, but who's insides have been replaced by machinery."

Hawke shuddered at the thought of there being more than one Kuma.

Just then Luffy returned to his normal size and she fell to the ground because of the weight change.

"Ouch, Luffy," she groaned.

"Let's just rest for a minute," panted the captain, shifting to get off of her lap, "I didn't expect to go into an all-out battle so soon."

"We should find a place to hide first," Sanji spoke up, "We don't want them to fi-"

Suddenly there was an explosion and dust filled the area where they were sitting.

"Damn you, PX-4!" a voice snapped, "It costs as much to build a warship than it does to make even one of you Pacifistas!"

"Pacifistas?" Hawke gasped as the dust cleared, revealing a very large, round man and another Bartholomew Kuma.

"Another warlord?!" shouted Usopp, "Is he the real one?"

"If he is or isn't we don't have the strength to fight," panted Sanji.

The Pacifista raised its palms and fired a huge laser blast right at the crew.

Hawke was thrown back by the force of the explosion and landed among some rubble at the edge of the clearing.

She groaned and sat up.

"There's no way we can take another one," she gasped.

Just then she heard Luffy's voice.

"Let's run away from here," he panted, "Let's split up and escape!"

Everyone froze.

Luffy was running away! Hawke blinked. He was right, someone would die if they stayed here and fought.

Hawke followed Zoro as the crew split up and took off.

Usopp joined them when he was thrown in their direction by a laser blast, clinging to Zoro's neck.

"Let go, Usopp!" Hawke said, slapping the snipers hands, "Zoro's hurt!"

Just then Brook appeared running alongside them.

"I'll have your back," said the skeleton.

The four of them quickly sped towards the bridge to the next grove. But they hadn't made it three steps before a sudden beam of light shot past them and began glowing in the space in front of them.

"What is that?!" Hawke panted as the light grew brighter.

They stopped running.

Suddenly a hand materialized from the light and there was an explosion.

Hawke was blown back a second time and landed heavily on the ground.

"Zoro!" she heard Usopp screaming.

She jumped up and looked around. Where the ball of light had been, there was now a very tall, slim man. Zoro was lying on the ground at his feet, apparently unconscious.

"Get away from Zoro, you freak!" shouted Usopp as he took aim with his slingshot.

"Kizaru!?" Hawke heard Robin's voice from behind her, "Be careful, that man is a Navy Admiral!"

Hawke stared at Zoro's unmoving body.

_He can't stay there!_ She thought frantically, _he'll be killed!_

"Zoro!" she screamed, "Get up!"

She had already thought she'd lost the swordsman once, she wasn't going to let that happen again!

Kizaru raised his foot over the swordsman and a point of light began forming at his toes.

"He's going to shoot a beam!" Hawke cried, "Zoro!"

Usopp began firing at the Admiral, but his shots went straight through the man. Then Brook tried to attack, but his sword also went right through Kizaru, leaving no damage.

"Get away from him, you bastard!" Hawke screamed at the top of her lungs and sprang on the Admiral, slicing his body with her knives.

Her attacks did have an effect, thanks to the seaprism on her weapons.

_Zoro!_ Hawke's mind was filled only with the thought of saving him.

Suddenly, Kizru's arm flung back and hit her with extreme force, sending her flying backwards.

"I'm a light man, a logia type," she heard the Admiral say as she struggled to stand up, "You must have sea prism on your weapons."

She heard the crew's screams, trying to get Zoro to move, but his body had reached its limit.

Suddenly, Hawke saw arms grow out of the ground and begin pulling Zoro to safety.

"Robin!" she gasped.

Kizaru watched as Robin rolled Zoro away from him with her many hands. He seemed amused. The crew looked on in terror as he suddenly appeared right where Zoro was and stamped his foot down on him. Robin tugged at the swordsman's unconscious body, but she couldn't move him.

"You'll die now," Kizaru said calmly.

"Zoro!" screamed Luffy.

The admiral raised his foot for a second time.

_No_, thought Hawke.

She felt herself running, not remembering when she had started doing so. Her blood was roaring in her ears.

_NO!_

She felt her wings growing from her back. She was almost upon Zoro.

Kizaru looked up and gave her a questioning glance, then he smiled and another ball of light began forming at his foot.

Hawke felt her legs moving faster, then lifting off the ground. She was there, she had made it!

She threw her body over the swordsman and rolled him out of the way, thrusting her wings up into the Admiral's face.

She heard a grunt and then saw a blinding flash. An explosion then erupted from somewhere behind her. Hawke clutched Zoro and wrapped her wings around both their bodies, shielding them from any flying debris.

She peeked through her feathers and took in the scene that had unfolded above her.

She saw that Rayleigh had appeared out of nowhere and was now fighting with Kizaru.

"Rayleigh-san!" Hawke gasped.

"It looks like you already had fortune on your side," Rayleigh grunted as he fought off the Admiral.

"Oi, Hawke," she heard Usopp's voice close to her.

She withdrew her wings and sat up, cradling Zoro's head in her lap.

"Good job on getting him out of there," continued Usopp, picking up the swordsman, "But we need to get out of here now!"

"Everyone!" screamed Luffy, "Think only of escape! Right now we can't beat these guys! Meet up in three days, but escape now!"

Hawke sprinted after the sniper and Brook followed her.

She heard thunderous footsteps as a Pacifista appeared behind them.

"Usopp!" she shouted, "Go on ahead with Zoro! Brook, with me!"

She turned and raised her weapons to attack, but was immediately blown away by a laser blast.

"Damn!" she shouted as she crashed into the ground.

She pushed herself up, ignoring the pain in her legs and arms.

The Pacifista was still chasing Usopp and Zoro, but Sanji appeared and planted a kick into the robots back, making it fall.

The force of his own attack was too much for his leg though, and the cook fell to the ground, helpless as the Pacifista raised its hand.

Hawke gasped in relief as the beam missed her crewmates, but the explosion caused Zoro to be flung from Usopp's back. The Pacifista began marching towards the helpless swordsman.

"NO!" she heard herself scream.

She used her wings to give her enough speed to reach the swordsman in time. She raised her knives and prepared to slash at the robot. But suddenly, there was a soft popping sound and it disappeared.

Hawke froze as this fact registered, then she bent down and began pleading to Zoro.

"Come on, Zoro!" she panted frantically, pulling at his shoulder, trying to lift him to a standing position, "We have to get out of here!"

"That's enough, PX-1," said a menacingly calm voice.

A shadow fell across them.

Hawke whirled around and stared at the hulking figure of Bartholomew Kuma that had appeared right behind her. She heard a shuffling on the ground and heard Zoro's voice.

"This one..." the swordsman gasped, "He's the real thing!"

Her wings were still out and she quickly flared them up, shielding Zoro from view.

Kuma stared down at her, his face devoid of all expression.

"So it was you all along," he said, raising his hand, "If you could go on a vacation, where would you like to go?"

Hawke watched as Kuma's hand descended on her. It seemed to be happening in slow motion. She could feel her knives drop out of her hands. She turned to look down at Zoro. He was still lying at her feet, but he had his eyes open, and they met hers with a look of horror.

"Zoro!" she gasped in fear, reaching her hand down to him.

Before she could make contact, there was a sudden popping sound and she was hit with an enormous force. It knocked her back so hard she lost consciousness.


	44. Chapter 44: Imprisonned!

**Chapter 44**

**Imprisoned!**

Hawke became aware of a whistling sound, like air flowing through a small crack in the wall.

_Am I flying?_ She thought, enjoying the floating sensation that surrounded her body.

Just then, the whistling changed its tone. It began getting lower and lower.

_Where am I?_ she thought.

Suddenly, her body made contact with a _very_ solid surface. The shock knocked the wind out of her, but she could only get one gasp of air into her lungs before falling once again into darkness.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

"Yep, that's her. It isn't every day that the criminals appear on our doorstep."

Hawke was pulled out of unconsciousness by clanging noises and the feeling of hands groping her body.

She squinted her eyes open and was greeted by three blurry faces looking down at her. Two men and… something else.

She groaned as her brain registered the pain that was radiating all over her body. It felt like she'd been trampled by a hundred of those Pacifistas.

Her eyes opened further as she recalled what had happened before she had passed out.

_Zoro! Luffy! Everyone!,_ she thought and struggled to raise her head.

"She's awake!" said one of the men.

The non-human face looked down at her. Hawke squinted again as it became two faces, then molded back into one.

_I can't see straight,_ she thought blearily_, I must have hit the ground really hard._

"Oh, she's just my type," the thing said, giving her goo-goo eyes.

It sounded like a man.

Hawke groaned and attempted to sit up, her body protesting her every move. In doing so, she realized that she had been put in handcuffs.

"What?!" she exclaimed and looked around her.

Her vision spun as she moved her head, but it gradually settled and she took in her surroundings.

She was on the steps of a large stone building. She seemed to be sitting in a large depression, and it looked like the stairs she was sitting on had been destroyed.

_No wonder I'm so sore_, she thought as she glanced at the smashed concrete.

She looked up behind her. The walls of whatever building it was were very high, with no windows disrupting the smooth, gray surface. A large wooden door was the only entrance or exit.

She looked forward and gasped.

The stairs stopped a few steps down from where she was sitting, and they ended in water! They were sitting in the middle of the ocean!

_Wherever this is.._, she thought, _I'm definitely not at Sabaody anymore._

She looked back at the people she assumed were her captors.

"Umm…," she stuttered.

"Hello, Dark Angel," sneered one of the men.

Hawke started.

_What did he just call me?_ She eyed the man distrustfully.

"What are you talking about?" she asked warily.

The man chuckled and his partner held up a paper. It was a wanted poster.

Hawke squinted. She didn't recognize the picture.

Before she could get a good look at it, the man put it away.

"It's nice of you to turn yourself in," he laughed.

Hawke's eyes widened and she looked back down at her cuffed hands.

"I'll take her inside," said the creature excitedly, "This will definitely get me my promotion. I'll be Warden by tomorrow morning."

"You shouldn't talk about that out loud, Hannyabal-san," said one of the men.

"Oh, did I say that out loud?" asked the thing named Hannyabal as he attached a chain to Hawke's handcuffs and started leading her through two large wooden doors at the top of the steps.

"Wh-Where am I?" stuttered Hawke as she was jerked to her feet and led forward.

"You have appeared on the doorstep of the greatest prison ever built," said Hannyabal over his shoulder, blushing as he did so, "Impel Down!"

Hawke tried to stop, her body was not enjoying this rapid movement, but her chain was yanked and she stumbled forward. She couldn't believe her ears.

_Impel Down?!_

She had been at Sabaody Archipelago only moments before… Had Kuma thrown her here to have her imprisoned? And if that was the case, wouldn't he have done the same with the rest of the crew? Where was everyone else? How long had it been since then? What had happened to the rest of them?

She was so distracted by these thoughts that she didn't notice when her captor stopped walking and ran right into his back.

"Oops," she grunted, stepping back.

"Watch what you're doing, criminal!" a menacing voice boomed down at her.

Hawke looked up and let out a little squeak of fear.

"Hey, Magellan," whined Hannyabal, "You're scary!"

"I hear you showed up on our doorstep unannounced," spoke the huge demon standing before Hawke.

Hawke quaked in fear and hid behind the Hannyabal creature.

"She's so cute!" exclaimed her captor.

"Don't talk like that," growled Magellan, leaning down to get a look at Hawke, "Well, she matches the poster: Dark Angel Hawke," he read from a clipboard, lifting a wanted poster, "Strawhat scout, 105 million beri."

Hawke froze.

_What had he just said?!_

She craned her neck to see the poster he was holding up in front of Hannyabal

She frowned. It was the same one that the man outside had shown her.

_When did they take that picture? _she thought.

The poster was indeed for her: The Dark Angel Hawke.

The picture had been taken at an angle behind her and showed Hawke with her wings outspread, feathers flying, in mid-turn towards the camera. She was looking over her left shoulder, directly out at the viewer, and had a fierce look in her eyes. Her left hand was down by her waist and the right was raised above her head, they were both clutching her knives. The background seemed to be a grove of Saboady.

_When did my bounty go up_? she thought.

"You caused quite the stir at Headquarters when they found out who you really were."

Hawke let out another squeak and jumped back. Magellan had caught sight of her eyeing the poster.

_Right_, she thought back quickly_, I did reveal my wings to Kuma and Kizaru. But how did they find out so fast? How can I already have a new poster?_

Magellan took another glance down at her.

"She's considered extremely dangerous. We'll put her on level six with the other high priorities until I can report this to the Fleet Admiral," he stated, "Get her through sterilization and screening."

"Yes," said Hannyabal enthusiastically, "Then make me Warden!"

"Shut up!" growled Magellan.

Hannyabal turned and led Hawke on down a passage.

She stared around her.

_This isn't good,_ she thought desperately, _I can't stay here, Luffy said to meet up in three days._

She was led to a door with a guard on each side.

"I have a new prisoner," said Hannyabal.

The guards opened the doors and Hawke was hit with a huge blast of hot air. She groaned as the heat worsened the pain in her joints.

She could hear a bubbling sound as Hannyabal pulled her through into the room. Her eyes widened as she saw a huge cauldron of boiling water occupying the middle of the floor.

"What's going on?" she muttered fearfully.

Hannyabal picked up her hands and attached a hook to her chain.

"You have to be sterilized," he said.

Hawke could see another guard off in the corner of the room with his hand on a lever. He grinned at her as he pressed it down.

She was jerked off her feet as her hands were raised above her head by the hook. She began kicking her legs as she was lifted off the floor.

"What are you doing!?" she shouted, "You can't put me in there!"

"The women are always so lovely to listen too," the guard chuckled darkly.

Hawke shuddered and kept kicking.

They were going to boil her alive!

She felt panic overwhelming her as she was dangled closer and closer to the cauldron.

"No!" she screamed as the hook began to lower her down, "Stop it!"

"I think she's too cute to be boiled," Hannyabal said with a huff, crossing his arms and pouting.

"Everyone must be sterilized Hannyabal-san," said the guard, "And you shouldn't say stuff like that out loud."

Hawke felt her shoes soaking through as the water began moving up her legs. It seared across her skin and she let out a blood curdling scream.

"Stop it!" she shrieked, "It hurts! It's burning!"

Her legs were soon completely submerged and she could feel her skin blistering. Her efforts at kicking began to slow since she was losing feeling and function in her legs.

"Stop!" she screamed, "Stop it!"

But she kept descending into the water.

_Luffy! Zoro! Help!_ her mind reached out as her skin was burned and boiled.

As her stomach and chest were submerged, she found it impossible to catch her breath due to the pain and the heat. Her screams were silenced as the hook lowered her head under the bubbling surface.

The searing pain on her face was surprisingly tolerable, the rest of her body had become burnt past feeling and seemed to have numbed her brain as well.

Hawke felt a jerk on her hands as her arms and head were lifted out of the water. She surfaced, spluttering but otherwise silent. Her body and brain had gone into shock and she made no noise as she was lifted out and lowered back to the ground. As her feet touched down, she fell limply onto the floor.

"Oh," chuckled the guard, "It was a bit too much for this one."

"We should have another room for the women," muttered Hannyabal, "Where they have to be wearing bathing suits. That's what I'll do once I'm Warden."

He grabbed Hawke's handcuffs and dragged her to her feet. Hawke let out a whimper as the already cool metal was pressed against her steaming skin. The feeling brought her half-way back to reality and she managed to stand on her own.

She shivered violently as she was lead out of the sterilization room. Hawke was surprised she could walk since she still had no feeling in her legs. Her brain was still reeling and trying to make sense of what had just happened.

She entered a room that was brightly lit and had a large desk at its center.

There was a woman guard standing at the desk.

"Hannyabal-san," she spoke up clearly, putting a clipboard down, "I'll handle her screening. You must leave."

"Aww," Hannyabal muttered and stalked over to another door, exiting the room.

Hawke stood, shivering and dripping, in the middle of the room.

"I am going to give you your prison wear," said the woman in a very formal voice, "Please remove your clothes and put them in this bag."

She held a folded bag out to Hawke. The scout stared at her with far away eyes, her mind still so numbed that she couldn't comprehend the situation.

_What did she say?_ She thought with effort.

The woman sighed.

"The younger ones are always more affected by sterilization," she muttered in an exasperated tone and began walking towards Hawke.

The scout could feel the woman poking and prodding her, but she couldn't bring herself to react. She just stood there, shivering and staring at the floor.

_What's going on…? _she thought slowly.

Just then, a ringing sound could be heard. It brought Hawke slowly out of her shock, giving her something to focus on.

"What do they want this time?" the woman gave a frustrated sigh and crossed the room.

Hawke saw the woman throw a small pile of beri's and a hair ribbon onto the desk.

_She must have searched my pockets…_ Hawke thought foggily.

The woman picked up a small snail phone.

"Yes?" she answered.

"Is this Domino-san?" a man's voice came through the line.

"Yes," replied the woman.

"Have you already processed the Dark Angel?" he asked.

"She's been through sterilization," said Domino, "I have just begun processing."

"Well don't bother," the man's voice said, "Marine Headquarters has been informed of the situation and has requested that she be held on death row until they can report back with further action."

Hawke forced her mind to clear and ignore her pain.

_Death row?!_ her mind raced, the room spun a bit around her.

Domino shot her a look.

"Yes, sir," she said into the snail phone and hung up.

She stood staring at Hawke.

"You don't look that important," she muttered, "But all criminals are the same to me. This means you can keep you clothes, since you won't be staying here too long. I've already searched you for weapons."

She picked up a metal ring that was lying on the desk and walked over to Hawke. She held up a small key and unlocked the ring. As it swung open, Domino grabbed the scout's handcuffs and pulled her arms upwards.

Hawke felt something wrap around her chest and then heard a soft click.

"We can't have you flying around here as you wish," the guard muttered.

Domino dropped her hands and grabbed the chain attached to her handcuffs, leading her to the door.

"Hannyabal-san!" Domino called.

The man appeared directly from beside the door.

"Here!" he exclaimed, "Make me the Warden!"

"That's none of my concern," snapped Domino, "But this one's just been upgraded to death row."

"Eh?!" shouted Hannyabal, "But she's just my type!"

Hawke ignored the two of them and looked down at her chest.

The ring had been placed around her, squeezing her ever so slightly.

_Oh no!_ she thought and she tried to take out her wings.

Even as she strained, they remained in tattoo form.

_It's a shackle to keep me from flying_! She realized in despair.

It seemed the marines already knew everything about her somehow.

_Well, not everything,_ she thought, _they didn't think to search my wings for my weapons._

She frowned to herself as she realized that it didn't matter that she still had her weapons if she couldn't get to them.

Hawke was brought out of her thoughts as she realized where she was.

She was being led down a large, winding staircase. Everything was quite dark and she couldn't make out much. Every once and a while they would pass a door, but other than that, nothing else could be seen. Hawke thought they must be very deep underground, they had climbed down a lot of stairs.

Eventually, they came to their destination door, but to Hawke it looked just like all the others. They went through and emerged into a room that seemed to be a guard room. There were uniforms and boots hanging in lockers and there were a few men standing in front of some screens hanging on the far wall.

"Oi!" said Hannyabal as he entered, "I have a new prisoner for level six!"

The men quickly turned around and saluted.

"Assistant Warden, sir!" they shouted.

Hannyabal began making his way to a door on the other side of the room. But one of the guards held up his hand.

"Hannyabal-san!" he said, "A riot has just broken out on level two!"

Hannyabal stopped in his tracks, causing Hawke to jerk herself back to avoid running into him again.

"What?!" he snapped in annoyance.

"The basilisk was chasing the prisoners as usual, but they suddenly began attacking it with a bunch of sharpened pieces of their chains!" reported the guard, pointing at one of the screens.

"Well, send Saldeath and the Blue Gorillas to take care of it," said Hannyabal.

"They're busy sir," replied the guard, "The prisoners on level three have been causing trouble all morning."

"Those idiots! Fine I'll go," Hannyabal glowered, "Now I won't be able to take this cute girl to her cell!"

He threw Hawke's chain to the guard and whirled around, going back the way he had come.

"Don't tell Magellan!" he said over his shoulder, "This'll get me my promotion for sure!"

"Oi, oi," muttered the guard as Hannyabal disappeared.

The other guards turned to Hawke.

"You're going to level six?" one asked dubiously.

"She's the one who fell out of the sky onto our front steps," muttered another, "Headquarters just found out she was the Dark Angel a few days ago."

"The one who showed up in Alabasta and then disappeared?" the guard holding her asked, "Why is she so important?"

Hawke stared at them.

_A few days ago?_ she thought, _that was only a few hours ago…_

Maybe she had been flying through the air for longer than she thought…

"Well, better put her in that cell that just emptied down in sector 15," said the guard sitting at the screens.

The guard holding her nodded and jerked the chain, making Hawke stumble forward.

He brought her through the other door and into a huge room that was filled with prison cells. The cells were cubes of cement blocks and were piled on top of one another in halfhazard stacks, forming a giant maze that reached high up into the shadows. Hawke craned her neck, trying to make out the ceiling, but she could see nothing but darkness.

_This is level six, so there must be five more levels above me_, she felt the enormity of the prison she had been captured by and began to despair at escaping.

"Come on," the guard grunted and yanked the chain.

Hawke peered into each cell as she walked by.

_There must be some dangerous people in here_, she thought, _Magellan said that I was being put with high priorities._

Each cell had at least one occupant, but there were many that held groups of people. They were all sitting back in the shadows and most didn't even bother to look up as Hawke was led by.

The guard took her deeper into the room and Hawke quickly lost her way in the dizzying maze.

"This place is cold," she muttered, shivering.

The guard looked back over his shoulder.

"They didn't even dry you off after sterilization?" he scoffed, "Serves you criminal right, I guess."

Hawke shuddered and looked down at her legs and hands. She could see the shining, blistered skin, but she was still numb to any pain she might be feeling.

The guard finally reached a small cell that was empty and began searching for the key that would open it.

Hawke looked around her. There was a particularly large cell beside her, but there were only two figures occupying it. She turned and looked behind her. There was another cell across from the one she was being put into, it only had one person in it.

"Alright, get in," the guard finally unlocked the door and pushed it open.

Hawke slowly stepped into the cell and flinched as the door slammed behind her and the key turned in the lock.

The guard left without saying another word.

Hawke listened to his retreating footsteps and the hopelessness of her situation began drowning her.

"No, let me out!" she shouted in a panicked voice, grabbing onto the bars and trying to look after the guard.

"Shut up!" a harsh voice suddenly rang out.

"Don't complain now that you're here," another snapped.

Hawke gasped in fear, then immediately became silent. She clenched at the bars.

"How did this happen?" she whispered, sinking to the floor and pressing her head against the bars, "What happened to everyone? Where's Luffy? Where's Zoro? How on earth did I get here?"

Hawke tilted her head and looked through the bars at the cage to her left.

There were two men in the cage. One was extremely large and was chained against the far wall, and the other was sitting on the other side and had his arms chained to the wall. The shadows were very heavy in the cells and Hawke couldn't make out their faces. And neither of them were giving her any attention at the moment anyways.

_Well, it doesn't matter who they are_, she thought, _I need to find a way to get out of this place._

She stood and tried reaching into her jacket. It was a bit difficult with her handcuffs and the shackle around her chest, but she managed to get one hand to the inside pockets. Her hands groped at empty space.

"Oh, right," she muttered, "Domino already searched me. But I didn't have anything in my pockets, they're all in my wings. Except…"

When Kuma had appeared before her back on the Sabaody Archipelago, she'd had two knives in her hands, but had dropped them. She remembered hearing the thud as they hit the ground near Zoro's hand.

_Zoro…_

Hawke bit her lip and tried to quell the worry that was rising in her chest and the pang she felt in her heart at thoughts of the swordsman.

_He was really injured_, she thought, _where is he now? Is he being taken care of? Did Kuma attack him after he'd taken care of me? What happened to Luffy and the others? Robin, Chopper, Nami, Sanji…_

She forced her mind back to her present situation.

_I have to get out of here first,_ she told herself.

Hawke looked down at the shackle and pouted.

"They're really horrible here," she muttered, "I could get out if they hadn't put this on me."

She began feeling itching and tingling sensations all over her body.

_Oh no!_ she realized frantically, _the feeling is coming back! I'm going to be in a lot of pain soon._

She tried to distract herself by pacing around her cell. She examined the nooks and crannies, trying to find any sort of weak point. She thought there might be a chance she could tunnel through a wall with her cuffs, somehow, if the walls were loose enough.

It was no use, though, the walls were almost seamless and there was hardly a crack to be seen. She felt the itching grow stronger and reached her hands down to her leg and began scratching.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," said a deep voice.

Hawke spun around.

"Who was that?" she asked, coming to the front of her cage.

But the voice didn't repeat itself and she was greeted with silence.

Hawke pressed her face against the bars and sighed. The metal soothed her seared face.

_How am I going to get out of this mess?_ she thought worriedly.

Just then there was a clanking of chains and a different voice rang out.

"You, girl."

Hawke looked up.

"What are you doing down here with the likes of us?"

She determined from the direction of the sound that it was the large man who was chained to the wall in the cell on her left. The other man in the cell stayed still, his head bowed in shadow.

"Um…" she stuttered but trailed off distractedly.

The itching sensations were turning into the feeling of little needles poking her all over her body.

"You must be feeling the pain from those burns about now," said the man, "Whatever you do, don't scratch."

Hawke clenched her fists.

It wasn't this man who had stopped her before, his voice was too hoarse. But she was glad that someone had stopped her, because it was the worst thing to scratch a burn. It would only make the pain more unbearable and take it longer to heal.

"I know," she said through clenched teeth, her voice squeaking oddly, "Thank you."

There was a pause.

"Are you going to answer my question?" the man asked gruffly.

Hawke blinked and looked towards the cage, squinting to try and make out his face.

"I don't know," she said, her voice was coming out very weak and frail.

She tried to clear her throat, but only ended up coughing.

"One would think you'd be up on level one," said the man.

"They probably just didn't want to ruin her pretty face," another voice called down, laughing, "Isn't she a sight for sore eyes! Take your shirt off, babe."

There was a sudden loud noise as chains began moving everywhere and hands began reaching through the bars of the cages around her.

"Yeah give us a show!"

"Dance for us, pet!"

Hawke backed away from the bars as the cat calls began.

"Aww don't go, honey, come back and play!"

"Shut up, you're the one scaring her away."

"She's just not used to real men. I mean look at her, the picture of innocence."

"Doesn't it make you want to rob her of it," someone cackled.

Hawke backed right up to the far wall of her cell and sank to the floor. Her skin was burning up, sending waves of pain all over her whenever she moved. She covered her ears, trying to block out the voices.

Eventually the taunts and cat calls stopped. Hawke stayed out of sight and sat as still as she could. The pain from being boiled alive was agonizing. Her every breath shot waves of pain across her chest and stomach. She sat there whimpering and crying. Her tears only irritated her skin, though, and she fell sideways onto the ground so they would fall onto the cell instead of her cheeks.

She lay there and tried to get a grasp of her situation and what had happened back at the Saboady Archipelago.

_Where did everyone else go?_ she thought, _where's Luffy, where's Zoro? How long has it been? Why was I the only one to end up here? What happened?_

But she couldn't figure out any answers through her pain and soon cried herself to sleep.


	45. Chapter 45: Torn Apart

**Hey everyone! Sorry for the lack of updates, I've been stuck on a few points of my plot for a while :(**

**This is a really short chapter because I wanted to give Zoro a bit of spotlight, but couldn't link him up with the other events that are going to take place in the near future for Hawke. (Plus some of you were eager for an update :P)**

**I hope you enjoy this chapter and I will be updating again very soon**

**Chapter 45**

**Torn Apart**

Zoro slowly became aware of the sound of blood roaring in his ears. It throbbed along his still raw wounds and made his head pound.

He did a mental survey of his body. Yep, it hurt everywhere. Lots of broken ribs, maybe his wrist too, that wasn't good. What had caused all this again?

Time seemed to be standing still. The swordsman knew he was lying on rocks or pavement, but he didn't move to get up, mostly because he couldn't move his body.

Suddenly, he felt a pain in his hand. Time sped up again, passing at its usual pace.

Raising his head with difficulty, Zoro stiffly looked down at his hand. His fist was clenched, tightly wrapped around something.

_What's this? _

He slowly unbent his fingers.

_Right_, he thought as he recognized the black and gold blades, _I grabbed them after she disappeared_…

_She disappeared… right in front of me… _

A tsunami of rage and regret rose in Zoro's chest, boiling up and over his heart.

"Damn it!" he bellowed, jerking his unwilling body up and slamming his fist onto the rock again and again, "Damn it! I was too weak! Damn it! Damn it!"

He hadn't been able to fight for her, or for him. The two most important people… he had done nothing to protect them… _they_ had ended up trying to save _him_.

_Hawke…Luffy…the crew._

Zoro stared at the two knives still gripped in his bloody hand.

Her eyes. The last part of her he'd seen were her eyes. Those two pools of green seemed to shine out at him from the black blades.

He felt a searing pain pierce his chest, it felt like he was going to be torn in half.

Those eyes. Full of fear and pain. But not concerned about herself… scared and hurting for him. The man lying defensless at her feet.

"Damn it!" he screamed again.

The frustration and confusion over not knowing what had happened to the others began gnawing at his mind.

"That Kuma was playing dirty," he snarled, "He wasn't following the navy's orders…"

His glanced around him. His vision spun, but he could make out that he was in a clearing, with trees surrounding him.

"Where the hell am I?" he panted, "This isn't Sabaody…"

Zoro gave a grunt and swayed where he sat.

His body was finally shutting down after being thrown about and losing so much blood. He toppled sideways onto the hard stones and lay there, panting.

_Damn it_, he thought as his vision tunneled and he passed out.


	46. Chapter 46: Siblings Reunited?

**Chapter 46**

**Siblings Reunited…?**

There was no way to tell how much time had passed while Hawke lay on the floor of her cell.

After she woke up, the guards came by twice and passed small plates of mushy porridge under the door. But she didn't get up. She couldn't move without her skin cracking and peeling, so she just sat quietly and let her body heal.

_That stuff is probably worse for you than starving anyways_, she thought as the guards came by to retrieve her uneaten meal for a third time, ignoring her growling stomach.

The jail was always so silent. Hawke found it hard to believe that there had been riots on other floors the day she had been brought down here.

In the silence, Hawke was surprised that she wasn't worrying about anything. Luffy and the others refused to enter her thoughts and her predicament didn't seem to bother her. She lay there in silence, listening to silence and thought nothing. Her mind had shut out all the traumatizing events in an attempt to let her heal.

There was a moment when the large man in the cell to her left began talking quietly. Hawke assumed he was speaking to the other man in his cell.

"There is a new prisoner in the old man's cell," she heard his voice.

The other man must have replied because there was a pause before the large man spoke again.

"Yes, a young lady," he said quietly, "Though there hasn't been any movement and she hasn't eaten anything since she came down here."

Another pause, this time Hawke could hear a low voice muttering some words, but couldn't make any of them out.

"Well you would have seen her if you'd been awake," the large man's voice gave a chuckle, "I'm always astounded at the way you can fall asleep at any moment."

This was followed by more muttering by the other man. Then the prison fell silent again. Hawke returned to her blank mind and time began disappearing again.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Eventually, she began moving her legs. Slowly stretching them out across the floor, inch by inch, until she could feel the stretch in her muscles.

"Mmm," she sighed in contentment.

The skin on her legs seemed to have healed over and no longer gave her pain every time she moved. Her arms were almost to that point. It was only at her elbows that she still felt some twinges, but those were much more tolerable. And her stomach, back and face still had a little ways to go, but if she took her time moving, her skin wouldn't crack.

She slowly stood up and stretched, feeling her muscles complain after such a long time of being held stiff.

Hawke began pacing around her cell again, getting her body used to movement. As she raised her hands to her face, she noticed just how thin her wrists were. Glancing down at her body, she gasped when she saw her ribs showing through her shirt.

"Oh my god!" she whispered, "How long has it been!?"

This time, when the guards came around with their meals, she gobbled up the meager portion of porridge without leaving a drop.

"I see you've finally decided to eat," the voice of the large man chained to the wall called over to her as the guards retrieved the plates and disappeared.

Hawke glanced through the bars at his silhouette.

Her eyes moved over the shadow of the other man and she hear soft snores.

_Asleep, I guess_, she thought.

"I couldn't move with my burns," she said, taking hold of the bars.

"Well I'm glad to see you've healed," answered the man, "They shouldn't let young ones go through that initiation."

Hawke smiled as his shadowy face.

"It's okay," she said, "I'm strong."

She heard a few chuckles and shot a glance at the cell across from her. The man in there had laughed at her…

"You still haven't answered my question," said the man in the larger cell "Why were you put down here with us? You can't possibly have done anything so horrible in your lifetime yet."

Hawke shrugged her shoulders.

"It isn't what I've done," she sighed, "It's more of what I could do in the future."

"Oh?" the man seemed interested, "And what is that?"

Hawke sighed.

"It doesn't matter," she muttered, "They caught me anyways."

"How high is your bounty?" asked the man.

Hawke felt a small smile flit over her lips. Despite everything, she felt a little bit of pride at the new amount she had received.

"A hundred and five million," she said quietly.

She heard more than one small gasp of disbelief. Apparently there wasn't just one person listening.

"That's quiet a lot for a young woman," said the man in the large cell.

Hawke smiled at him.

"It's more than I deserve for what I've done," she admitted, "But as I said, it's more for what I could do."

"You enjoy being mysterious," the man grunted.

Hawke stared across at him.

"Anyone would be cautious in what they say when they don't even know who they're talking to," she said.

There was a short silence.

"My name is Jinbei," said the man in a gruff voice.

Hawke blinked.

_Jinbei?!_ She thought, _of the Seven Warlords?_

"And what is someone like you doing locked up in here?" she asked, "Aren't you a Warlord?"

There was a huff.

"I may be a Warlord, but I am not the Marine's pet," replied Jinbei, "I refused to take part in the war and so I was sent here."

Hawke blinked.

"War?" she asked.

"Against Whitebeard," Jinbei grunted, "Over this man here."

Hawke saw his head jerk in the direction of the other man that shared his cell. He raised his foot and slammed it down onto the ground. The slap echoed around the prison and the sleeping man jerked his head up, showing that he had woken.

Hawke squinted over, but she could only make out his outline. She heard the clink of chains as the man raised his head.

"What's wrong with you, Fishman!" she heard his voice grunt.

"I was going to introduce you to our new neighbour," he said.

The man yawned and Hawke saw the outline of his head turn to face her.

There was a sharp intake of breath.

"Hawke!?" the new voice shouted in disbelief.

It sounded extremely loud as it broke the silence and a few men snapped retorts out of their cages.

Hawke still couldn't see the man, but it was obvious that he knew her.

"Yes?" she asked, moving to the corner of her cell that was closest to him.

"Wh- What are you doing here?" his voice quavered.

"I got shot here by Bartholomew Kuma," she said quietly, trying even harder to see what this man looked like, "I was at Sabaody Archipelago with my crew about to set sail for the New World."

His voice sounded vaguely familiar.

She saw his silhouette pull against his chains, his arms straining.

"How can you be here?" he was muttering, "You're supposed to be with Luffy!"

Hawke's eyes widened.

"You know Luffy?" she asked eagerly.

"Know him?" the man stopped moving suddenly, "You don't recognize me?"

"Of course not!" snapped Hawke, pressing her face up against the bars, "You're all in shadow over there. I can't see what anyone looks like. Can you move into the light?"

The man, who had been sitting cross legged, slowly stood up. He took a step forward and strained against his chains, leaning out.

Hawke watched as his face slowly came into the dim light.

Her heart skipped a beat. As she recognized the black hair and red necklace.

"Ace!?" she shrieked.

There was a sudden clamour.

"Hey, shut up!"

"People are trying to sleep here!"

Hawke stared at her brother.

"Ace!" she gasped, "What are you doing here? How'd you get here? You were right _there_ the whole time?!"

She saw Jinbei shift in the shadows.

"You know her Ace-kun?" asked the Warlord.

"Know her?" Ace stared, wide-eyed at Hawke through the bars, "She's my little sister."

Hawke's heart caught in her throat as she heard these words.

"What?!" Jinbei exclaimed.

The man across from Hawke shifted his sitting position, but looked on in silence.

"Ace!" Hawke gasped again, trying to reach through the bars despite her handcuffs, "What are you doing here?! How did they capture you?!"

Ace sat back down and stared at her with a worried expression on his face.

"When we met in Alabasta, I was looking for a man," he began.

Hawke nodded.

"Luffy told me," she said.

Ace nodded and then continued.

"Well I eventually caught up to him. Blackbeard," he spat the name out, "But he played dirty and caught me offguard with his devil fruit powers. He turned me in for a chance at the empty Warlord seat that Crocodile left."

"But what's going on?" Hawke asked, "What's this war Jinbei's talking about?"

Ace lowered his head.

"The Old Man, Whitebeard, is going to try and save me," he muttered through clenched teeth, "I'm going to be executed very soon."

Hawke's eyes widened and she stared at him, not comprehending.

"What?" she asked weakly.

Her mind once again struggled to keep all thoughts out of her head.

Ace raised his head and met her gaze with watery eyes.

"Why did you have to show up here?!" he shouted at her, his voice breaking, "I've already resigned myself to my fate! Why are you here?"

Hawke felt her hands begin to shake.

"No," she heard herself say, "No, no, no!"

Ace kept staring at her.

"What do you mean you're going to be executed?!" Hawke said in a quavering voice, completely forgetting that she was also on death row, "If this is a joke, you better stop it right now."

She wished so hard that he would smile and wipe away the tears falling down his face, but he kept staring at her, his jaw working hard as he tried not to break down completely.

"It's okay, Ace! Don't worry, I'll get you out!" Hawke stammered frantically, "We'll escape from here and run away!"

She was bordering on a break down and she felt it.

"That's impossible," said Ace dryly, his tears stopping, "There's no way out of here."

"But you can't die!" Hawke cried, "What about Luffy!?"

She saw Ace tense up, but he kept his head down.

"Luffy'll be alright," he muttered, "I've already asked Jinbei here to look out for him if I don't make it through."

Hawke hit her cuffs against the bars, the bang echoed through the cells.

"Don't say that!" she cried, her voice trembling, "I barely even know you yet! You can't leave!"

Ace suddenly calmed down and gave her a small smile.

"I think we know each other more than you think," he said, "Luffy told me all about you when Gramps first brought him to live with us. About how you came in on a little boat when you were just a baby, all alone. You would always be the one to drag him out of trouble, you always took the blame for him."

Hawke's hands were shaking so hard that she could no longer hold onto the bars.

"And when I met you in Alabasta," Ace continued, "Even though I didn't know who you were, you put yourself between me and the Marines. And I repaid you by leaving you behind to be captured."

He hung his head.

"I think we understand each other quite well," as he finished his voice started to quaver.

Hawke bit her lip, trying to keep her tears from falling.

"Don't make it out like that," she whimpered, then cleared her throat in an attempt to steady her voice, "Luffy told me all about you too! About how you were the one who always got him in and out of trouble, you and Sabo. About how much he loves you! Do you know how much he looks up to you?!"

She could see Luffy's face in her mind, eyes shining and grin extending from ear to ear as he told her about Ace. The picture calmed her and she felt her hands begin to steady.

"Ace, you can't give up!" she sobbed, "He can't lose you… I can't lose you, not when I've only just met you again."

Ace looked up at her. His face was strained, she could tell he was still in turmoil.

"I had Luffy after Sabo died," he said, "And… Luffy will have you."

Hawke sank to the ground, holding her head in her hands.

"Shut up!" she whispered frantically, her mind grasping at the faintest hope, "You just shut up! Luffy will come and rescue us!"

There was a muttering sound as the other prisoners mocked her words.

Ace smirked and look at the ground.

"You should stay away from the bars," he muttered, backing up into the shadows again, "It's best not to get these other guys interested in you."

Hawke stared at his shadow, her eyes still streaming with tears.

"Ace…" she whimpered, squishing herself against the bars, "Ace, don't shut me out…"

There was no reply. The jail was silent. She could hear the drip of water from a distant leak in the wall.

She felt her entire body start to shake as she tried to muffle her sobs. She slowly crawled to the back of her cell and curled up on the floor.

_Luffy will come_, she thought desperately, her mind grabbing and holding fast to the only hope she had, however minute it was, _he will. Somehow he'll come._

The walls her mind had put up suddenly broke under the strain and Hawke let out a long, loud, wail.

She cried for a long time, unable to cope with the sudden news that Ace would be executed, her current situation and being away from Zoro and the crew.

_This can't be happening,_ she thought, her emotions reeling.

When she had finally cried herself out, she lay there in silence. Though this time her thoughts flew from Ace to Luffy to Zoro to Robin and the rest of the crew and her heart ached for all of them.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

There was a clanking noise and Hawke opened her eyes. There was a guard sliding a tray of food into her cell.

_It's been that long?_ she thought and wiped her nose and eyes, _come on Hawke, get a grip!_

She sat up and crawled over to the plate that was sitting at the front of her cage.

She sat there and glumly ate the lumpy porridge. She had just enough energy to chew and swallow. It was an effort to bring the bowl up to her mouth.

She finished and stared over at Ace's cage. He was still sitting back in the shadows.

She felt tears coming to her eyes again and wiped them away.

"I'm not giving up on you," she said into the silence, her voice coming out clearly this time, "Not ever."

There was no reply.

Hawke clenched her fists and looked around at the other cages.

The man in the cage across from her was still sitting far back in the shadows.

She thought she'd try and start a conversation.

"Are you alive in there?" she asked, staring at the silhouette.

There was a pause, then Hawke saw the man's head move.

"Yes," came a deep voice, "You've made it interesting in here, I was almost ready to die of boredom."

Hawke blinked.

She recognized his voice. This was the man who had stopped her from scratching the first time.

"Who are you?" she asked, shifting her position so she was facing him.

There was silence.

"Alright," said Hawke, "Then how long have you been in here?"

The man shifted again.

"A while," he said, "Though it's hard to tell exactly."

Hawke was encouraged by the reply and the distraction it provided.

"Thank you for before," she said, "For stopping me from scratching."

There was a grunt, but nothing more.

Hawke gave him a funny look.

"It's always so quiet in here," she muttered, "Don't you people talk to each other?"

"Why should we?" said the man, "We're all here for the same reasons, and we'd all rather not share our pasts."

Hawke shrugged her shoulders.

"Well you guys could do something to pass the time," she said, "Like tell stories or sing."

The man let out a menacing chuckle.

Hawke started. That laugh sounded familiar! She squinted at the shadow of the man across from her. Was this another man she knew?

"I'm serious," said Hawke, "If I don't keep myself distracted I'm going to drown in my thoughts. I need to keep my mind on other things."

A sudden noise erupted from a few cells above Hawke.

"Haha!" a man's voice cackled," I'm glad that old crazy guy finally died! This girl's much more interesting!"

Hawke started at the sound, but she grit her teeth and ignored the jeers now coming from the cells around her.

The man across from Hawke stood up and took a step towards the bars, but not enough to bring him out of the shadows.

Hawke glanced over to him.

"There must be some enjoyment to be had?" she asked in an almost pleading voice, "Even down here in the depths…"

"Your outlook is foolish," the man snapped.

Hawke let out a small laugh, the sound ringing and bouncing off the walls. She didn't know why, but she found the way he had insulted amusing.

"It may be foolish," she said, "But didn't I keep you from dying of boredom?"

The man grunted and stood still in his cell.

Hawke turned her attention to Ace. He was still sitting in the dark with his head bowed. Hawke could see streaks of tears falling from his down-turned face to the floor.

"It's more foolish to resign yourself to nothingness," she said, "Than to cling to the last thread of hope with all your might."

Ace's head lifted a little. Not enough for Hawke to see his face, but she was satisfied that he had heard what she'd said.

"By clinging to that thread you're just trampling on all the others below you, vying for the same thing," the man across from her said.

Hawke turned her attention to him.

"Not at all," she said gently, "By clinging to that thread, I can reach down and take one of the groping hands and help lift them with me. If they do the same, everyone will be saved… it all depends on them."

She saw the man lift his arms, trying to cross them despite his shackles. It looked like his left hand was quite swollen.

_I wonder if they torture people down here_, she thought worriedly.

"You are wise beyond your years," the man muttered, "But naïve as a child."

Hawke stood and took a hold of the bars.

"And isn't that the best way to live," she said defiantly, "If I've learned anything sailing with my friends, it's that you should gather wisdom from experience, but never lose your sense of wonder at the world. That, and always trust in your nakama."

She pressed her face against the bars.

"And that's why I know Luffy will come here!" she stated, "He'll come and save Ace and I!"

The man laughed his sinister laugh.

Hawke frowned and peered at him through the bars. She was _sure_ she knew that laugh from somewhere…

"Nobody would want to break _into_ the most fortified prison on earth and nobody could, it's impossible," he laughed, "Only one man has ever broken _out _of here and that was over twenty years ago."

Hawke glared at him.

"Luffy would!" she hissed at him.

Another chuckle.

"And does he even know you're here?" he asked in an amused voice.

Hawke shot him another glare.

"He doesn't," she admitted, "At least, I don't think he does."

The man chuckled.

His laugh annoyed Hawke this time, pushing her buttons.

"But the execution of Whitebeard's second division commander will undoubtedly be in the newspapers all over the world," she said snappily, "When Luffy finds out that Ace is here, he'll stop at nothing to rescue him."

"No he won't!" Ace exclaimed suddenly.

Hawke started.

"There's no way Luffy could get me out of this," he said, "Its better that he stays away from this war. I can't take him down with me!"

Hawke stared.

"He's your brother!" she exclaimed.

Ace lowered his head.

Hawke hated seeing her older brother in this state. She felt that she needed to comfort him as best she could, especially since that was all she could really do in this situation.

"Do you know about what we did at Enie's Lobby?" she asked.

Ace shook his head, but Jinbei nodded.

"The Strawhat pirates declared war on the world that day. They shot down the World Government's flag," said the Warlord in a low voice.

Ace's eyes widened. The man across from her shifted his weight from foot to foot.

Hawke nodded.

"And do you know why we did?" she asked seriously, determined to get her point through him, "Do you know why we faced the might of the World Government by ourselves and declared war on them without a second thought?"

There was a tense silence.

"We did it to get our nakama back!" she shouted, "Luffy would take down the devil himself to save his brother and it wouldn't matter to him if he died trying!"

Ace clenched his jaw and stared at her.

"I wouldn't count him out," she said quietly, "He's the man who will become the Pirate King!"

There was a sudden uproar at her last words.

"Don't be so cheeky, little girl!" shouts rang down on her.

"A rookie like Strawhat has no chance at that title!"

Hawke ignored these remarks and kept her gaze on Ace.

She raised her voice so he would be able to hear her above the clamour.

"We're family," she said, letting her feelings slip into her voice, "You're my brother too!"

She reached her fingertips through the bars as far as she could.

"Ace," she let her tears fall again, "I can't lose you! You can't die!"

Ace bit his lip and seemed to be fighting back tears.

"I-," he stammered, "I won't die."

Hawke smiled through her tears. Ace hadn't completely resigned himself to his fate just yet. She'd managed to bring the fight that was still in him to the surface.

"Good," she whimpered, wiping her eyes.

The shouts of the other inmates subsided and silence fell on the prison once more. Hawke remained standing at the bars of her cell. She wanted to see Ace as much as she could.

"Did you know that Luffy punched a Celestial Dragon in the face?" she asked.

She heard chains moving.

"He did what?!" gasped Jinbei.

Ace smiled.

"He's always doing stupid stuff like that," he said, "He keeps me worrying."

Hawke smiled.

"Don't worry," she said, "We look after him. But he's quite the handful sometimes. He got us into a Davyback fight twice _in a row_ because he thought the game was fun."

Ace let out a chuckle this time.

"Of course he'd find that sort of thing fun," he grinned.

Then he raised his head and smiled at Hawke.

"I'm glad he found you again," he said, "He needs someone to look out for."

Hawke blinked.

"Well, he has nine of us to look out for," she said, thinking about herself and the crew.

"But he keeps an extra eye on you," replied Ace, leaning back, "He was really worried when you didn't show up in Alabasta. Way more than he let the others know. What really happened back then, anyways?"

Hawke laughed.

"I got kidnapped by Sir Crocodile," she said, "But it all worked out in the end. We helped Vivi save her kingdom from an all out civil war."

"So I heard," said Ace, "You should have told me you were my little sister, I wouldn't have let you get kidnapped."

Hawke smiled.

"I just didn't know how to tell you," she said, blushing at the memory, "And everything happened so fast."

Ace let out a real laugh this time.

"Yeah," he smiled, "That stupid Luffy. That's the closest I ever want to be to any marine."

Hawke laughed.

"Yeah, same here," she sighed, remembering the mishap with Smoker, "At least you weren't actually touching him. I thought I was going to be flattened, stuck between both of you!"

"Hey, that's when the Dark Angel first appeared right?" Ace looked at her eagerly, "Do you guys know who it is?"

Hawke started.

"Yeah," she nodded, smiling.

The rest of the world knew that she was the Dark Angel now, so it didn't really matter if she told the men stuck in this prison.

"Who is it?" Ace asked, leaning forward, "All the marines were hitting each other over the head to try and catch him."

"It's a "her"," she rolled her eyes at Ace and paused.

He was looking at her expectantly. And, she noticed, so was Jinbei.

"_I'm_ the Dark Angel," she finally said.

There was a shocked silence.

"You?!" exclaimed Ace, "No way! You have wings?!"

"Well, now it makes sense that you're down here," muttered Jinbei, "But I never would have suspected that."

Hawke smiled.

"I told you it's not what I'd done, but what I_ could_ do," she said.

She looked back to Ace.

"Yes, I do have wings," she said, "I'd show you, but they put this shackle on me so I can't get them out."

She raised her arms to show him the metal band around her chest.

"Plus it doesn't matter who I tell now," she said, lowering her arms again, "I revealed myself to the marines at the Sabaody Archipelago, before I got blasted over here. So now the whole world must know who I really am."

"I'm impressed that you kept it a secret that long," said Jinbei.

He looked over at Ace.

"You have a very strong family," he muttered.

Ace gave him a smile.

Just then, they heard a loud boom as a door opened somewhere, followed by the tramp of many footsteps.

Hawke started and stepped back into the shadows of her cell.

A group of guards walked by, surrounding a man in a marine uniform.

Hawke's breath caught in her throat.

The group stopped in front of Ace's cage and the marine sat down.

"Give us a minute," a gruff voice snapped.

The guards retreated back the way they had come.

Hawke slowly walked to the front of her cell and looked at the back of the marine sitting on the ground.

"Are you still alive…?" Garp's gravelly voice broke the silence, "Ace?"

"Gramps…" she heard Ace mutter.

Hawke tried to speak, but no words came out.

It was her grandfather!

Garp sighed.

"I wanted you, Luffy and Hawke to become great marines…," he muttered, "Nevermind marines, you two brothers have become notorious outlaws and she's become one of the most dangerous threats to this world. I'm sure you've heard the rumours about Luffy and Hawke too. In Water 7, they picked a fight with the World Government and somehow managed to invade the Island of Law, Enies Lobby."

Garp chuckled.

"I shot over there and gave him a taste of the old man's fists of love! And gave them a stern talking too," he sighed, "Doesn't seem to have helped one bit though. After that, they caused a huge uproar on the Sabaody Archipelago. I'd expect no less from my own grandkids!"

He let out a real laugh this time.

Hawke smiled as she heard the sound.

"Oh, yeah," Garp lowered his voice a little, "I told Luffy about his father. He was really surprised to hear that he had one."

Hawke recalled that day at Water 7. Luffy had seemed genuinely confused at the thought of having a father. She smiled at the memory.

"Doesn't matter whether we know about it or not," Ace interrupted their grandfather, "As annoying as it is... Both me and Luffy carry the blood of a world-reknowned criminal. There's no way we could've been marines."

Garp stayed silent.

"Even though I owe my mother a debt of gratitude and took the name "Portgas", I still can't stand the thought that I carry the blood of that worthless father of mine."

Hawke blinked. She hadn't known about Ace's feelings towards his father.

"I don't remember him at all," Ace went on, "I don't owe him anything."

She saw Garp raise his hand.

"Yeah, I get what you mean," he said in his gravelly voice, "but he was just—"

"Gramps…," Ace interrupted, "My old man is… Whitebeard. And no one else."

Garp sat rigid, staring into the cell.

Hawke finally found her words and cleared her throat.

Garp moved his head slightly, hearing the sound, but didn't turn.

"Gr- Grampa?" Hawke stammered.

Garp looked over his shoulder with an annoyed look on his face.

"What did you call—" he stopped as he saw Hawke.

He sat there, frozen, for a few moments. Then he jumped up and ran over to her cage.

"What are you doing here, young lady?!" he shouted, obviously quite upset, "I heard you had been imprisoned here, but I didn't expect to see you! That damned Sengoku, never tells me anything!"

"What?!" Ace shouted, "You knew she was here and you didn't even say anything to me?!"

Garp turned around and tried to act nonchalant.

"I didn't want to worry you," he said, attempting to smile.

"You idiot!" shouted Ace.

Garp swept up to the bars of Ace's cell and hit them with a fierce punch.

"Show some respect!" he roared, then he turned to Hawke, "I guess you should know that I've delayed your execution. You were supposed to go at the same time as Ace here!"

"What?!" gasped Hawke and Ace at the same time.

_That's right,_ Hawke suddenly remembered, _Ace isn't the only one on death row here!_

"You're getting executed too!" her brother shouted at her, "Why didn't you tell me?!"

Hawke blushed.

"I-uh," she stammered, "I forgot…"

Garp groaned and sat on the floor in between the two cells. Jinbei and the man across from her cell both looked on in silence.

"I was able to convince Sengoku that having you both executed at the same time wouldn't allow the marines to gather enough information on you to justify such an event."

Hawke blinked.

"Enough information?" she asked, "About me?"

Garp looked over at her.

"They can trace Luffy's line through me and they know Ace's parentage," he muttered, "But they have absolutely no information on yours, except what I could give them."

Hawke blinked.

"My parentage…," she trailed off.

"Don't bother asking," Garp waved his hand at her, "I have no idea about it."

He pointed his finger at her.

"They were ready to execute you based on the fact that you're the step-sister of these two," he gestured at Ace, "But I convinced Sengoku that, until he knows your lineage, it would serve him better to keep you alive."

Hawke stared out of her cell in confusion.

"Why would my lineage be so important?" she asked.

Garp gave her a smirk.

"Well, if they Navy knew where the blood of the Dark Angel flows from," he said, "They can erradicate the entire line in one swoop!"

Hawke gasped and stared at her grandfather.

"Umm…" she stammered, "Thanks for keeping me alive… I think?"

Garp let out a booming laugh.

"Your welcome!" he shouted, then he became quiet, "Even though you're all notorious criminals… you're still my family…"

Hawke felt a lump form in her throat and she stuck her fingers through the bars.

"Grampa," she whispered.

Garp came over and touched the tips of her fingers with his knuckles.

"How did you become this cursed Angel?" he asked her suddenly, "You certainly didn't have wings when you were younger. You were the perfect little young lady…"

Hawke lowered her eyes. It was true she'd never told Garp about what had happened when she'd left Fuusha village, even when he had come to visit her when she was living with her adoptive marine family. She just hadn't had the courage to tell him, she thought he'd be ashamed that she had been so weak. But she now knew that it wasn't a weakness.

"It happened when I left the village," she said quietly, "I ended up stranded on an island and got experimented on. That's how I got my wings. But I could always speak to birds."

"What?!" snapped Garp, "You can talk to animals?"

Hawke gave him a small smile.

"Just birds, Grampa," she said.

There was a pause. Then Garp cleared his throat.

"I'll come visit you again," he said quietly.

Hawke bit her lip and nodded her thanks.

Just then, a voice called down the hall.

"Vice-admiral Garp! It's time to leave!"

Garp dropped his hand and looked back to Ace's cell.

Then, without a word, turned and disappeared from view.

Hawke listened to his footsteps as they faded away, then to the boom of the door closing, then to the silence.

"How could you forget you were being executed!" exclaimed Ace.

Hawke flushed in embarrassment.

"I was a bit distracted with you being executed, excuse me!" she huffed.

Then she sighed and sank to her knees.

"Everything's going wrong…" she whispered.

She was away from her crew, she didn't know where any of them were or if they were okay. She was imprisoned, had been tortured, was being underfed, her older brother was being executed and so was she!

Her shoulders shook as the frustration, terror and pain swelled to the surface once again.

She wanted to be in Zoro's arms…

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Time passed, but Hawke had no way of knowing just how much. She tried counting the times they were fed, but found it too hard to remember what number she was at.

The prisoners were silent for the most part, only making noise when the guards walked by, doing their rounds.

Hawke managed to get Ace to tell her about his days sailing with the Spade pirates and then with Whitebeard. She could tell that both she and Ace benefited from telling each other about their adventures.

She wanted to get to know him as much as she could before they got separated again. Not that she was hoping for that. She continued to believe that Luffy would come for Ace. Her mind had forced her to believe that this would actually happen, and that she would be taken away from the horrible place.

_I just hope someone tells him_, she thought worriedly,_ because there's no way he'd read a paper on his own._

Ace seemed to enjoy showing off to his little sister. He put a lot of embellishment into his stories and made sure not to tell her of any of his defeats, except the one at the hands of Whitebeard.

Jinbei also put in his word every now and then, since he was friends with Whitebeard.

Hawke hung onto every word that left her brother's lips. She could feel the same wonder that Luffy felt towards Ace.

"You're so cool," she smiled through the bars.

Ace flushed and stuck out his chest, showing off his pride.

"Well, I need to be strong to take care of an idiot little brother and a weak little sister," he laughed.

Hawke stuck out her tongue.

"Hey!" she mocked being insulted, "I can handle myself!"

Ace smiled over at her.

"I wish Gramps had brought both you and Luffy to live with us," he sighed, leaning back, "Having you around would've got Luffy to stop being such a baby."

Hawke laughed.

"Yes, that would have been amazing," she sighed, "But Grampa said that I should stay in the village… He didn't want Luffy having an influence over me. He thought Luffy would turn me into a pirate."

Ace leaned forward.

"Oh?" he smirked, "Gramps was on your back about the marines too then?"

Hawke nodded.

"He wouldn't train me himself though," she smiled at her memories, "He said that I would die if I took him on… and that he didn't want to hurt me."

She leaned against the bars of her cell.

"That old bastard," Ace laughed, "He beat us to the brink of death on a daily basis. He must have a soft spot for you."

Hawke winked.

"Yes," she giggled, "And I've used that to my advantage many times."

Ace laughed and Hawke smiled. She felt extremely happy, despite their predicament.

"Well," yawned Ace, "I think I'll get some shut eye."

He leaned back and rested against the wall.

Hawke soon heard snores from all around her and realized that she was feeling quite exhausted herself. She scooted back to her bench and lay down, still hoping with all her strength that Luffy would come for them.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

There was a commotion one day when Ace had another visitor.

Hawke stared from the back of her cell as a beautiful woman walked by. She had long black hair and was wearing a long reddish dress. Magellan and Hannyabal were flanking her, as well as Domino and some other guards.

Hawke listened as the woman was introduced to Ace.

_The Empress Boa Hancock?_ she thought, watching the backs of the group, _what does she want with Ace?_

She stayed back in the shadows as the Empress teased the prisoners and caused an uproar. Hawke was lucky when Magellan's shot missed her as he subdued the prisoners with a poison attack.

The group then turned to leave, but Hawke heard Ace call after them.

"Oi!" he shouted, "What you just said… was it true?!"

"I have no reason to lie to you," Hancock replied, turning back, "That's right… he was afraid you'd be upset."

Hawke listened intently to those words and felt her heart beat quicken.

_What are they talking about?_ she thought eagerly, _did Hancock say something to Ace?_

The visitors left the floor and there was a moment of silence.

Hawke went to the bars.

"Ace-kun," Jinbei began, "What did that woman say to you?"

Hawke strained her ears to hear Ace's reply.

"She said my brother…" Ace mumbled in disbelief, "… is coming here."

"How reckless of him!" Jinbei gasped.

Hawke clenched the bars in excitement. Her spirit immediately in a celebratory state. Her frantic hope seemed to be coming true!

"Luffy!" she whispered happily, "I knew you'd come!"

There was a strained silence.

Hawke could hear Ace panting heavily.

_He's not taking this very well,_ she thought worriedly.

"Ace," said Jinbei, "Wouldn't it be better to assume that that woman was lying?"

Hawke glared at the fishman and Ace choked.

"So you're saying she came all the way down here to lie to me?!" he shouted.

"Ace…" Hawke said quietly.

She saw his shoulders relax a little at the sound of her voice.

"No... sorry," he muttered, "But that's just the type of brother he is… He's been making me worry about him ever since we were kids. That idiot!"

Hawke raised her voice.

"And you think he hasn't been worrying about you?" she called over, "He wants to protect you too."

_Luffy's coming!_ she clenched her hands together in excitement.

"That idiot!" Ace sobbed, "Now all of us are going to die!"

Hawke looked over to see tears falling down his face.

She knew Ace was worried about Luffy, but he should know as well as she did that the rubberboy won't stop until he's reached his goal, whatever that goal may be.

"Ace…" she said worriedly.

She couldn't stand seeing him so scared, but there was nothing she could do to comfort him from where she was.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

The hours passed and eventually a pair of guards came to stand near their cages.

"Today's the day, eh?" one of them said, yawning.

"I hope everything goes smoothly," said the other, "I don't want a war in Impel Down."

Hawke stiffened.

"Today's the day?" she said in a terrified whisper.

She shot a glance at Ace and saw him stiffen.

_No!_ she thought, _it's to soon!_

There was a sudden booming sound and Magellan and Domino appeared.

"Fire-Fist Ace," the warden growled menacingly, "We are to hand you over to the marines at nine o'clock! They will take you to Marineford, where the execution ground is."

The guards went and unlocked the cell door and lifted Ace to his feet.

Hawke watched in horror as Ace was lead out of his cell, his head bowed and his hands and feet shackled.

She felt a mounting feeling of terror rising in her chest as she watched the events unfold in front of her. She was powerless to do anything!

"Ace! No!" she cried, "No! Don't take him away!"

Magellan turned towards her with an annoyed grunt.

"What's this?" he snapped, "Why are you making such a fuss?"

Hawke reached her hands through the bars, trying to grab onto her brother as he was being led by her.

"Ace! No!" she shouted, tears falling down her face, "Don't let them take you away!"

"Oi, shut up!" one of the guards said, trying to push her hands back through the bars.

"Don't touch me!" Hawke screeched and batted his hand away, "Don't take Ace away!"

She watched as Ace stared straight ahead, ignoring her cries.

"Ace!" she screamed, "ACE!"

She saw his shoulders stiffen and he began to turn around.

"I told you to shut _up_!" the guard shouted back at her.

Hawke felt a huge force hit the side of her head. She heard a crack and then all was darkness.


	47. Chapter 47: It All Comes Together

**Chapter 47**

**It All Comes Together**

Crocodile watched as Hawke fell to the ground and lay still. The guard lowered the butt of his gun and moved along and Fire Fist Ace was sent off to his execution.

The ex-Warlord lowered his head and thought over the events that had transpired since the young woman had been locked into the cell across from his. And the conclusions he drew lit a spark that had all but fizzled out the moment Monkey D. Luffy had so humiliatingly defeated him. The beginnings of another ambitious plan started to form.

_I might not be finished with the outside world after all… _he sighed, half irritated, half amused.

He glanced across at the girl's motionless body. She'd been knocked out cold.

_She'll be like that for a while_, he leaned back against the wall of his cell.

He had thought he'd finish out his days down here. At least, he'd been sure of that upon his arrival at Impel Down.

Crocodile frowned as he ran his hand over his golden hook.

Back then he had resigned himself to the sentence of death by boredom that level six of Impel Down imposed upon its prisoners. But soon after he'd arrived, the face of a young girl he'd held hostage in Alabasta began to haunt him.

He had tried to put it out of his mind, but level six's torment was the forced contemplation of every thought that ventured into the mind. And at some point he recalled the meeting in the basement of Rain Dinners and the entertainment that had been provided.

Crocodile never remembered anything specific about his prisoners, especially if they were solely tools to bring in bigger fish. Even now he couldn't recall any detail about the countless others he'd used. But Hawke had reminded him too much of that woman from his past, Solace D. Cielle.

_Cielle…_

Crocodile clenched his fist as he recalled the island of calm in his otherwise chaotic life.

_But then_, he thought, _it was all an illusion._

_He saw the tavern in his minds-eye. Her form dancing across the stage, her voice singing softly out to him across the room… he had been broken then, his ambitions and dreams shattered. Sure he still had his Warlord title, but what good did that do when he had been proven to be so weak!?_

_And in his state of weakness, she had taken advantage of him._

Crocodile's frown deepened.

_No, she hadn't taken advantage of him. He had been vulnerable and had acted irrationally; he'd been so stupid._

_He had made himself a regular at the Howling Harpy Tavern and had watched her from afar, only speaking to her when absolutely necessary. But over time, she had managed to become close to him. They began seeing each other outside of the tavern and Crocodile found himself enjoying her presence. He wasn't used to such feelings of attachment. He had made it a point not to trust anyone._

_He wouldn't say that he had loved her. He knew he wasn't capable of feeling that emotion. But she had been the one person he'd considered equal to himself. She had been the only person he'd respected… she still was._

Crocodile frowned as his fingers inspected his hook for the millionth time. He found the little, almost invisible, notch at the base of his hook near his wrist. The compartment swung outwards with a soft click, revealing a small rolled up paper. He had spent many nights looking at what was on this paper, none of which he'd admit to anyone. But today, he left it in its safe spot, closing the golden door with a click.

"Holding onto your weakness, eh?" he growled to himself in the darkness.

There had been countless times he'd almost destroyed that piece of paper, but for some reason he'd felt that it could still be useful and would put it back in its place.

Crocodile smirked and glanced over at Hawke's cell.

"And it looks like the time to use it has finally come," he muttered before letting his mind wander again.

_He recalled what he had said to Cielle before he'd left that island. They hadn't parted on friendly terms and the last words he'd spoken to her were quite vile. It wasn't until he'd already left that he felt he'd been unfair to her, but the damage was done and he found that he didn't regret his actions. And it was even after that that he had found that piece of paper…_

_He had returned to the island after a few years, once he had put his plan into motion, ready to take her with him. But he had been too late._

Crocodile clenched his fist around the curve of his hook. His hard gaze searching the golden surface, digging deep into the blurry outline reflected back at him.

_Cielle had left the island with another man, heading for the East Blue. And when she had, she'd been pregnant with that man's child._

_Crocodile had been surprised at the rage he'd felt. He found himself sailing over to the East Blue to find the couple. By complete coincidence, he'd landed on a weird little island named Gunkka. And after asking around, an old woman had told him that there had been a pirate raid on a passing ship many months before, with a woman with white hair as the sole survivor. She had been heavy with child and had in fact given birth on this island._

_"A beautiful baby girl!"_

Crocodile frowned out through the bars.

_But there had been no man with her, and she left soon after, gaining passage on another merchant ship._

_After learning this, he had given up his search. He couldn't bring himself to forgive Cielle. She'd born a child that was not his, and by doing so had betrayed him and whatever relationship they had had. Perhaps he had considered her his property, either way she wasn't any more._

_With these thoughts, and a secretly heavy heart, he continued on with his plans. His only regret being that he had succumbed to the one weakness he abhorred: trusting in others._

Crocodile pulled himself out of his memories and let out an animalistic growl.

He hated recalling those unpleasant times. But the rage had long since died within him, and he had distracted himself by indulging in many excesses and focusing on his ambitions.

And he had been successful in keeping his past far from his mind. At least, until he had taken a certain pirate scout captive.

He hadn't realized the connection at first, although he did have a strangely strong attraction to the girl. Which had surprised him, since it had been some time since he'd taken an interest in anyone.

And to his chagrin, as he had forced her to dance for him and his subordinates, he had had some unwelcomed flashbacks. She'd moved just like Cielle had, she'd looked just like Cielle had. And then she had finished her dance and had looked up to him with Cielle's sharp, peircing green eyes.

He couldn't help but wonder… if this was Cielle's daughter.

His feelings had then taken a turn towards curiosity, especially once he'd figured out she was the Dark Angel. It had been bitterly disappointing when she had escaped Nico Robin's grasp while they were leaving the casino.

"The damn woman probably let her get away on purpose," he growled to the floor of his cell.

But after that, he had been defeated by that little shrimp of a boy and had been arrested and stripped of his Warlord title. Events which had been sufficient distractions that drove the young woman from his mind.

However, once he had been transferred to Impel Down, either fate or coincidence had been dealing his cards. No sooner had he been placed in his cell, when a wizen old pirate had begun cackling at him.

_The old man occupied the cell opposite him and was obviously close to the end of his life. But the way he carried on all the time, you'd think he was a teenaged girl. He wouldn't stop talking about all his exploits when he'd been a free man, all the people he'd killed._

_Crocodile had shouted at the crazy old man to shut up on multiple occasions, but it had been futile. He had been able to tune the bastard out every now and then, but one day he found himself listening intently to what the old man was saying._

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

"That little wench was the prettiest one I'd seen," the old man cackled, "That silvery hair looked so much brighter when it was splattered with blood!"

Crocodile stiffened in his cell.

"What are you blabbering about now?!" he snapped.

"Oh, just this beauty I killed back in the East Blue," the old man cackled, "She had the whitest hair..."

He began jabbering nonsensically after that. But Crocodile wanted to hear this story. After all, he had nothing better to do, and this one might provide him with some information.

"Oi! Old man!" he snapped, standing and moving to the front of his cell, "Where was this silver haired girl? When did you see her?"

The old man seemed to be startled at receiving attention, but then he let out another cackle and started jumping around.

"Oh that was back in the old East Blue!" he sneered, "Back when I was still in the prime of me life! 'Bout twenty odd years ago, after old Roger bit the dust and freed up the seas for me. It was a beeeautiful day!"

Crocodile rolled his eyes.

"Shut it about the damned weather, you idiot!" he spat, "Tell me about the girl."

The old man across from him only cackled and sat down. Then he began rolling around on the floor.

_This guy's insane_, the hooked man grit his teeth in frustration,_ but I need to know if it was her… _

He checked himself.

_Why do I need to know this?!_ he snapped inwardly, _I should care nothing for the past! That damned woman! Tormenting me even now!_

Completely oblivious to Crocodile's inner conflict, the old man suddenly sat up.

"It was a merchant ship!" he exclaimed, "Lots of treasure aboard! Lots of good wine too! The captain ordered no quater, so I was excited! So excited! I found her over near the rail, she was about to jump but I grabbed her and went straight for her throat! The red matched beautifully with her blue dress! I created a masterpiece I dare say!"

He waved his hands in front of him, like he was showing off some object.

Crocodile froze.

_A blue dress…Cielle always wore her favourite blue dress…_

He knew that he shouldn't care about this anymore. Trusting Cielle had been a mistake and he always learned from his mistakes and then buried them forever. But he found himself speaking again.

"Tell me, old man," he said, his voice calm and smooth as silk, "Was there anyone with her? A man? A child perhaps?"

The cackling went on for a while, but then it was cut short and there was a sudden silence.

Crocodile looked over and saw the man was sitting right up close to the bars, his back rigidly straight, staring right at the hooked man.

"What?" Crocodile snapped.

"There was a lifeboat," the old man said.

The ex-Warlord blinked. The crazy man's voice had lost its bravado, now it sounded weak and frail.

"I heard a babe crying…"

As Crocodile looked on, the old man's eyes bulged and his mouth hung open.

"Oi, what's wrong with you?!" the tall man stepped back in disgust.

But he got no reply.

The old man fell back, his body contorting on the ground for a few silent seconds before lying still.

Crocodile went back to his bench and sat down heavily. He knew, when the figure opposite him didn't move again, that the crazy old bastard had finally kicked the bucket.

But he didn't care at all. He had gotten what he'd wanted.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

The pieces were all falling into place, at long last.

Crocodile now understood what had happened all those years ago. He couldn't know what Cielle had been thinking, and he told himself that he didn't care.

Crocodile looked across at the girl lying on the cold prison floor.

_Her daughter…_

He sighed and massaged his forehead with his thumb and forefinger.

He now had almost no doubt that Hawke was Cielle's child.

He'd had a moment of confusion when it had been revealed that she was the sister of Strawhat Luffy and Fire Fist Ace, but Garp had said they were stepsiblings.

And Fire Fist had said that she had come to his island alone in a lifeboat as a child… it all fit.

It seemed that he wouldn't be able to stay here for the rest of his life. Now he wanted to get out of this prison… and get Hawke out of here too.

The ex-Warlord's eyes pierced through the shadowy air of the prison.

_After all, the Dark Angel won't be able to do anything if she gets executed, now will she?_

Crocodile peered through the bars into the fishman's cell.

_And Whitebeard's going to war, eh?_ he thought, leaning back_, I'd like to give him a taste of revenge before he dies…_

He smirked as the plan became more fixed in his mind. The plan which would hopefully bring about his revenge and gain him a sure influence over the most powerful weapon in this world. _The key to chaos… or peace…_

_It depends on something very unstable though…,_ Crocodile's brow creased as he considered the center point of his plan, _women are very unreasonable…_

Suddenly, there was the sound of running feet and who should appear before him, but Strawhat Luffy.

_What a turn fate has given me_, the hooked man gave a sly smile before standing up and letting out a menacing laugh.

**So if this chapter didn't make sense, go back and read chapter 23. Also, I struggled a lot with Crocodile's character, every time I wrote out this chapter he sounded to fatherly or to loving or emotional (so if he comes off a bit like that, I'm sorry .). **

**He didn't really "love" Cielle, at least in the normal way. He felt more like she was his property, but at the same time he did trust her to wait for him and he did actually respect her (so it's a weird situation). **


	48. Chapter 48: Prison Break

**Chapter 48**

**Prison Break**

"Where are you, Ace! I'm here to save you!"

Hawke started herself awake. Her head was aching, but she'd sworn she'd heard someone yelling. She groaned and rolled over, her handcuffs clanging against the stone floor. The sound echoed off the walls, bouncing away into the depths of the prison.

_What happened?_ Hawke squinted her eyes open.

She was gazing at the wall of her cell. The echo still bouncing around in her brain.

_Ace!_ Her mind suddenly brought her back to reality, _Ace was being taken away!_

The echoing was getting louder, making tick-tock sounds in her ear. But Hawke ignored it and tried pushing herself up. Her head pounded and forced her to pause, bowing her head and resting on her forearms.

Just then the tapping sound was replaced with voices. Hawke fought a wave of nausea as she tried to distinguish what they were saying.

Suddenly, a dark, menacing laugh pierced the silence and cut off the mumbling voices.

Hawke took a breath, swallowed hard, and raised her head to look out of the cage.

Her vision spun for a few moments, but once it steadied she took in the scene before her.

There was a group of people standing out in front of her cell. They didn't look like guards. There was a strange man in a long parka whose body was split down the middle into two colours, orange and white. Then there was a giant …man? Hawke couldn't tell the gender of this person. They had purple, bushy hair, tons of makeup on their face, was wearing a red unitard with fishnet stockings, and they stood head and shoulders above the other one.

_Who are these people?_ She wondered, pushing herself up onto her knees.

Just then, she realized there was a third figure. A smaller person standing in front of the cell opposite her own.

Hawke stared at the back of the person, who was facing away from her. He seemed to be arguing with the man in the cell opposite hers. She saw the black hair, the yellow shirt, the red pants… the straw hat.

Hawke felt tears come to her eyes and she let out a strange, squealing sound.

"Luffy!" she panted, jerking herself to a standing position, "Luffy, is that really you?"

But her words were drowned out by the purple haired person as they stepped forward.

"Let's release him, Straw Hat-boy," they said in a man's voice, "He would certainly make a powerful ally."

_Huh?_ Hawke thought, _they want to release that man?_

Then she shook her head and took hold of the bars.

"EH?!" Luffy spun around and pointed at the man in the cell, "Iva-chan, that guy's-"

Hawke took a deep breath.

"LUFFY!" she shouted with all her might.

The group in front of her froze.

She watched as Luffy's eyes rose and focused on hers. His arm fell and a look of disbelief crossed his face.

The man with the purple hair turned and saw her.

"Huh?" he grunted, "Do vyou know her, Straw Hat-boy?"

Luffy didn't answer, instead he bolted over to the bars and grabbed onto them fiercely.

"Hawke!?" he shouted, "What are you doing here?!"

But Hawke couldn't answer. She was to busy crying her eyes out.

"Luffy!" she sobbed, "I knew you would come! Ace didn't believe me, but I knew you'd come for him!"

She pressed herself up against the bars.

"Luffy," she pleaded, "Take me out of here. Take me away from this horrible place. We need to go after them, they took Ace! He's going to be executed and we have to go save him!"

Luffy still looked amazed at what was happening, but he nodded and whirled around.

"Iva-chan!" he cried, "We have to get her out! She's my sister!"

Iva froze, with an amazed look on his face.

"Vyour sister!" he gasped dramatically and jumped back, slamming himself into the wall.

The man who was orange and white walked up behind Luffy and began fiddling with the lock on the cell door.

There was a click and the lock fell to the floor. The man then held the door open and Luffy rushed into the cell.

"Hawke!" he gasped as she fell into his arms, "Are you okay?"

Hawke smiled as the orange and white man's hands turned into scissors and he cut her hand cuffs off.

"I'm fine, Luffy," she whimpered, "I'm okay now…"

"But how did you end up here?!" her brother asked urgently.

"This is where I landed when Kuma hit me," Hawke explained as she tried to maintain her balance, the shock of Luffy's appearance and the fact that she was still recovering made the feat hard to accomplish, "I'm guessing the same thing happened to you and the others? Or are they with you?"

She looked around eagerly, briefly hoping to see a head of green hair appear from behind any of the corners.

"No," muttered Luffy, "I don't know where the others are, but I guess they all got sent to other places, they'll be okay."

"Yes," the purple haired man stated, it seemed he had finished extricating himself from the wall, "Vwe should be trying to get out of here if vyou want to go save Ace-boy."

He turned and faced the cell opposite them

"Which is why VI still think vwe should free him, Straw Hat-boy," he said.

Hawke felt Luffy stiffen beside her and he walked forward. She followed and they both went up to the bars.

Hawke blinked and then gasped in horror.

"Crocodile!" she whispered, her legs began to shake again.

_All this time, I was this close to him_?! She realized_, I had an entire conversation with the man who brought Vivi so much sorrow! I knew his laugh sounded familiar!_

"Well, well, Angel," the prisoner chuckled darkly, "What do you think of your neighbour?"

Hawke stiffened and took a step back.

Luffy grabbed her hand to help steady her.

"Iva-chan!" he yelled, "This guy's-"

"Vyou're not stopping here," stated Iva-chan, "If vyou're going to Navy HQ, vyou'll need him even more."

Hawke winced as Crocodile growled.

"Ivankov..!" he snarled from behind the bars.

Ivankov leaned down and looked into the cell.

"Long time no see, Croco-boy," he said sneeringly.

Luffy started.

"What? You know him?" he asked the large man.

Now that Hawke had a closer look, she guessed that Ivankov was an okama.

"Vwe've met," Ivankov said, flipping his hair, "Back when he was still a rookie."

Hawke glanced through the bars and saw that Crocodile looked extremely uncomfortable.

_Huh_? She thought, _this man makes Crocodile feel threatened?_

"It'll be alright," the okama continued, "Even if he were to try and betray vus, VI can hold him back."

Hawke gasped.

"You're really strong," she let her amazement slip out of her mouth.

Quickly realizing what she had said and seeing the furious glare Crocodile had thrown her way, she blushed and looked at the ground.

"Well VI can't completely trust him, but…" Ivankov let out a chuckle, "VI've got a firm grasp in this guy's weakness!"

Hawke looked up, intrigued.

_Crocodile has a weaknes_s? She thought, looking at the man through the bars_, I wonder what it is? It seems he's really embarrassed about it._

Crocodile looked a mixture of scared and downright furious.

"Oi," he snapped, "If you say anything uncalled for..!"

"Oh my," Ivankov chuckled again, "Do vyou really think it's a good idea to give vme that tone? VI don't mind telling everyone right now…About vyour past, that is."

Crocodile looked like he would have very much liked to kill the okama man with one swipe of his hook. His eyes were so dark and menacing that Hawke shivered even though his stare wasn't directed at her.

"As long as vyou're a good boy and help us out, Vi won't say a thing," Ivankov said decisively.

"Why you-!" Crocodile seethed.

Hawke concealed her smile.

This outrageously dressed man was treating Crocodile like a disobedient child! This side of the ex-Warlord was quite different from the one she'd been subjected to in Alabasta.

_Then again_, she thought_, when we were talking, he seemed like a relatively reasonable man…_

Just then the other inmates seemed to realize what was happening and began shouting to be let out of their cages too. But Ivankov silenced them with a strange "wink" attack that Hawke had never seen before.

"I beg of you!" a loud voice rang out.

Hawke recognized it and spun around, pulling Luffy with her.

"Please, take me with you! I'll definitely be able to help you!"

"It's Jinbei," Hawke said, pointing the Warlord out to Luffy.

Her brother let go of her hand and walked up to the other cage.

"I've known Ace-san ever since he joined the Whitebeard pirates," said Jinbei, "He's told me everything about you, his little brother! I'm here because I opposed this war. But I wish to save Ace-san."

Hawke watched as Luffy approached the fishman.

"Please!" Jinbei finished his plea, "Let me choose the place of my death!"

Hawke saw Luffy staring intently at the fishman.

"I think Jinbei should come with us," she said, "He'd also be a powerful ally."

There was a long silence.

"Sure," said Luffy.

Hawke smiled.

As the orange and white man opened Jinbei's cell, the fishman nodded towards them.

"I am most grateful," he said solemnly.

They next freed Crocodile, much to Hawke's discomfort.

The present and past Warlords had a little face-off, but Ivankov reigned Crocodile in before it came to blows and the group set of once again.

Crocodile blew a hole in the ceiling above their heads with his sand, then the orange and white man, who Hawke found out was named Inazuma, used his scissor hands to cut the floor into a spiral shape, then elevated the spiral to form a ramp up to the floor above them.

And with that, they raced up to the fifth level of Impel Down.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

They paused in a store room on level five to form a plan. Crocodile used this time to change out of his prison attire and Hawke found a box full of extra rations, which she quickly handed out to everyone.

"Waoh! Thanks Hawke!" Luffy started hungrily into his ration while grabbing four more from her hands.

"Luffy!" she snapped playfully, "Leave some for the rest of us!"

She quickly distanced herself from her brother and handed the rest of the food around.

"Thank you very much, Hawke-san," Jinbei bow his head to her as he took what she offered him, "You spoke up for me earlier and are looking after me now."

Hawke blushed and waved her hand.

"Don't be like that," she smiled, "I know everyone is hungry, that sludge they give us is revolting."

She paused and then stuck out her hand.

"I wanted to thank you too actually," she said quietly, "I'm glad that Ace had someone to talk to while he was down here…"

Jinbei gave her a penetrating stare.

"I know that I wasn't locked up for nearly the amount of time you guys were," Hawke continued, "But if you hadn't spoken to me, I think I would've… thank you so much for being there for him!"

She bowed her head.

Jinbei grunted and reached out to take her hand.

"I was only so lucky to have been placed in the same cell as Ace-san," he said gruffly.

Hawke smiled and lowered her hand.

"But thank you all the same," she said and then continued around the room, handing out the rations.

Ivankov, or Emporio Ivankov the Okama Queen, had many subordinates who had been living with him within the bowels of the prison. And now they had joined Luffy's group and were set on breaking out of Impel Down.

Hawke approached a man dressed in fishnet stockings and a bunny outfit who was shining Crocodile's new shoes.

"Here you go," she smiled as she handed him a package, "Everyone needs all the strength they can muster."

"Well then don't waste it on_ him_," a deep voice growled.

Hawke jumped as Crocodile's large hand snatched the ration out of hers before the bunny man could take it.

"Hey," Hawke stammered, "There's plenty to go around, there's no need to get grabby!"

Crocodile glared down at her, his dark eyes piercing. Hawke shuddered under his gaze.

"You've changed since we last met," the hooked man said casually.

Hawke felt the heat rise in her cheeks. She didn't know how to respond to this.

"From what you told Fire Fist," Crocodile continued, "You've had plenty of adventures."

Hawke simply nodded.

"I hope you've gotten stronger," the ex-Warlord's voice suddenly became snappy, "Or you'll be of no use to us during this escape. There will be strong enemies."

Hawke looked down at herself, then returned Crocodile's gaze.

"I will do all that I can," she said quietly.

She quickly handed another ration to the bunny man, who was still kneeling on the floor, whirled around and walked away.

She finished handing out the food and then sat down by Luffy to nibble on her own. She sat in a brooding silence as Ivankov spoke to Mr 2, or Bon Clay, who had also been imprisoned in Impel Down, and whom Hawke had given a warm welcome to when she saw him join them with the rest of the okamas.

Despite feeling taken aback by the conversation she'd just had, she wolfed down three packages of rations and got Inazuma to cut the ring keeping her wings trapped.

Many exclamations were heard when she took her wings out of their tattoo form to stretch them and to retrieve her weapons, especially from Ivankov, but Hawke ignored them. She only had eyes for the two empty knife slots on the harness.

"Zoro…" she whispered, tightening her grip on her sword before tying it around her waist.

Her mind went back to Saboady Archipelago and the last moments the crew had been together.

Hawke bit her lip to keep back her tears.

Just then Luffy called over to her.

"Oi, Hawke," he waved his arm, "We're ready!"

She quickly joined her brother and they made their way out into the freezing icescape of level five.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Hawke shivered as she ran alongside Luffy through the snow. They had been running for a while now, and Ivankov and his group had fallen behind almost as soon as they'd left the break room. But besides that, they had had no troubles and no interference.

_Which could be a good sign or a bad sign, _she thought, blowing on her hands to keep them warm.

They reached the staircase that led up to level four and began the ascent. Luffy in the lead, with Jinbei and Crocodile on either side a step behind him, and Hawke bringing up the rear.

"Why is the woman with us?" Crocodile snapped as he looked over his shoulder, "Shouldn't you be back with the okamas?"

Hawke glared at him but didn't reply.

"Hawke'll help us," Luffy called over his shoulder.

Crocodile just grunted and kept gliding along. By only turning the edges of his lower bod into sand, he could glide across the ground as though he were floating.

_That must save all his energy for the real fight_, Hawke thought as she ran along, _but maybe he's right, after all, I'm not at my best…_

The time she had spent imprisoned, though relatively short, had taken a great toll on her body. Though her ribs weren't exposed so much as to be seen through her shirt anymore, she was still underweight and not all of her strength had come back yet.

_I'll just have to do my best,_ she repeated to herself as they reached the door to the fourth level.

Crocodile quickly dried the door into dust with his right hand and it blew off its hinges.

Hawke's breath caught in her throat as a massive wave of heat rolled out to meet them.

"So this is the Inferno level," Jinbei muttered.

There was already a large crowd of guards waiting for them and as soon as the dust settled, they began their attack.

They shot at Crocodile, him being the one most open to attack, but the bullets just went through his sand body.

The rest quickly jumped to the counterattack.

Crocodile slashed at the group closest to him, turning them all into mummies in an instant. Luffy bombarded another group with his multiple fist technique. Jinbei used fishman karate to quickly annihilate a large portion of the troop. And Hawke whirlwinded herself through the remaining guards, bringing them down with one sword attack.

_Well I haven't lost all my strength_, she felt quite relieved, _I can still help._

Reinforcements were quick, however, and soon there were more guards than before facing off with them.

"Move it!" said Luffy in a serious tone, "I'm in a hurry."

Hawke stood at her brother's shoulder, watching the guards for any sign of an attack.

"Let's go," Crocodile grunted.

And the four began their onslaught.

They were soon joined by Ivankov and his crew as well as Mr. 1, whom Crocodile freed from his cell on this level. And together, they all made short work of the guards.

After that these large blue creatures showed up, but Ivankov took care of them with one of his wink attacks.

Hawke was slicing through another group of guards when she heard a cracking sound and felt something wrap around her waist.

"What a naughty girl you are!" she heard a whiny, high-pitched voice from behind her.

Hawke let out a gasp of pain as she was dragged backwards across the ground and landed in a heap at someone's feet.

"Naughty girl's need to be punished!" the simpering voice said.

Hawke looked up and saw a woman dressed in a very skimpy pink leather outfit, her long, red hair covering her eyes and the handle of a long, black whip in her hand.

"Go, Sadi-chan!" shouted a guard.

"I would love to hear you scream," whined Sadi, as she threw Hawke against a stone pillar.

Hawke grit her teeth as her back hit the rock. She felt for the whip and brought her sword down on the taught rope, slicing it through.

"Ah! You're a very bad girl!" shouted Sadi-chan as she stamped her foot, "My babies will take care of you!"

As she spoke, three huge figures towered up in the dust behind her.

"Come here, my babies," whimpered Sadi-chan.

The figures lumbered forward, revealing themselves to be a rhinoceros, a zebra and a koala. But their bodies were so muscular and huge, that they were almost beyond recognition.

As Hawke struggled to her feet, the rhinoceros turned to face her and bellowed. She raised her sword and let out a cry as she ran to meet the massive animal. But before she could even get close, all three were struck down simultaneously.

Hawke skidded to a halt and stared, then she whirled around to see Luffy, Jinbei and Crocodile standing behind her.

"You okay, Hawke?" Luffy panted, whipping sweat off his chin.

She nodded.

"Yeah," she panted back.

"Did you actually think you could take on an awakened zoan with just a sword?" Crocodile suddenly turned on her.

Hawke started and stared up at him, not responding.

"A weak thing like you wouldn't even be able to make a dent in that rhino's horn," Crocodile continued, Hawke couldn't tell if he was being serious or mocking her, "You'd be dead if I hadn't taken care of it."

Hawke bristled at his words and glared at him, her fist tightening around the hilt of her sword.

The ex-warlord leered down at her.

"I'll show you," she muttered under her breath before turning and facing off with some of the guards.

Ivankov changed into a female version of himself and took on Sadi-chan, and the rest of the group pressed forward towards the doors.

As they reached them, however, the doors opened to greet them. And Hannyabal stepped out, declaring her would not let them pass.

Hawke actually felt sorry for Hannyabal as she and Luffy hit him with all they had. But the assistant warden would not yield. Even when he had fallen, he grabbed Luffy's ankle and wouldn't let go. Hawke admired his unwavering spirit, but they had to save Ace, so he had to be defeated.

Hawke steadied herself, panting after her barrage of attacks on the assistant warden. Luffy had backed off too.

"Why don't you fall?!" her brother shouted.

"I won't let you pass!" cried Hannyabal.

Hawke clenched her teeth.

"I know your will is set," she said, squaring her stance. A vision of Ace being led away flashed through her mind. "But mine is too! And I will save Ace!"

She pointed her sword at the assistant warden and lept into the air. She flared her wings out and beat them to lift her higher, then changed her position to a dive. She plummeted towards Hannyabal as he readied himself to receive her attack.

"You will let us pass!" Hawke shouted, bringing her sword down.

There was a swishing sound and Hawke landed. Her feet slamming into the ground behind the assistant warden. She glanced at her sword and saw it stained with blood… and black?

"What?" She gasped.

But even as she reached out to touch the dark blade, the shadow faded and the steel shone in the light of the flames that burned behind her.

There was a thump and she turned to see Hannyabal sprawled on the ground, out cold and defeated.

Hawke sheathed her sword and went back to Luffy's side.

"Woah," Luffy panted, "Nice one, Hawke."

She was about to reply when a sudden wailing sound was heard from the doorway.

Hawke whirled around to see a black, oozing mass seeping down the stair case.

"What is that?!" she cried, backing up.

A man emerged from the darkness, quickly followed by others.

Hawke didn't recognize him, or his followers, but Jinbei seemed to.

"Teach!" the fishman seethed, "Or should I say, Blackbeard!"

Hawke gasped.

_Blackbeard! He's the man who…_

She felt her fist clench around her sword, her vision blurred and she heard her blood roaring in her ears.

…_the man who turned Ace in_!

Luffy must have realized the same thing. He confronted Blackbeard. The latter began going on about how it had been a surprise when he'd found out that Luffy was Ace's brother. But Hawke was barely hearing any of it. Her legs were moving her, step by step, towards the man who had made her brother suffer so much. She felt her hand raise her sword, her mind was focused on the man in front of her. She just had to get past Luffy and she could attack. She was almost there.

Suddenly, Hawke became aware of something wrapping around her waist. She looked down and saw a flash of gold, then she was thrown backwards, crashing into the rubble of a collapsed column.

Coughing and panting, she climbed unsteadily to her feet. She clutched her head, feeling, for some reason, like it had cleared. She looked around and saw that Luffy had struck out at Blackbeard instead, landing a hard blow on his opponent.

"What happened?" Hawke panted, stumbling out of the rubble.

Suddenly, Blackbeard somehow had Luffy in his grip and he slammed him into the ground head first.

Hawke heard a voice from above her and looked up to see Crocodile standing on top of a pile of rubble.

"Blood?" the hooked man grunted, "Isn't he a rubber man?"

Hawke gasped and looked at her brother. He was writhing around on the ground screaming in pain.

"Luffy!" she yelled.

"Ace was surprised too when he saw his own blood!" laughed Blackbeard, "It's because my darkness fruit can drag even devil fruit powers in!"

"Shut up about Ace!" Luffy shouted and sprang in to attack again.

Hawke blinked and sprang for her brother.

"Luffy no!" she shouted, "Fighting him now isn't the most important thing!"

But again, she was dragged back, this time by a pressure on her shoulder.

Luckily, Jinbei intervened and stopped Luffy from fighting by convincing him that he needed to save his strength for freeing Ace.

Hawke breathed a sigh of relief before looking over her shoulder for what had stopped her.

Ivankov and his group were standing behind her, but none of them were close enough to have grabbed her. She raised her eyes and saw Crocodile standing on his tower of rubble.

_Was it him?_ She thought, _…why would he want to stop me?_

But Crocodile wasn't paying attention to her, his gaze was directed at Blackbeard.

"You said you're Blackbeard, right?" he called down, "I'd heard that some no-name pirate from Whitebeard's crew had taken my place in the Seven Warlords…"

Blackbeard sneered up at him.

"But isn't it odd," Crocodile continued, "Why would you, who's been called to Navy HQ, be down here right now? You're pretty much throwing away the Warlord rank that you wanted so badly."

"It's all part of my plan," Blackbeard laughed, "And it's not like I'm obligated to tell you anything, Mister Crocodile."

The ex-Warlord shrugged his shoulders.

"That's true," he said, "And to be honest, I don't really care."

A sudden call went up that Magellan had arrived and the prisoners started to make for the third level. Hawke stood by Luffy as they stepped past Blackbeard.

"I'm definitely going to save Ace!" Luffy shouted defiantly.

Blackbeard laughed.

"Sure," he said, "I won't say it's useless. After all there's no such thing as impossible in this world."

Hawke glared up at the man as they walked passed him.

"Sky Island did exist, didn't it?" Blackbeard suddenly asked.

Hawke froze.

_How did he know about that_? She wondered.

She glanced at Luffy, but he didn't answer.

"One Piece is the same," Blackbeard cackled, "It definitely exists!"

Hawke turned back to face him.

There was something wrong with this man, besides the fact that she hated him for what he did to Ace. She could feel it, as if his body was giving off an aura. This man was wrong, and a threat. For some reason, she felt that she needed to tell him something. The words had formed on her tongue before she even had the chance to think about it.

"I won't forgive you," she simply stated.

"Huh?" Blackbeard cocked an eyebrow at her, "Who's this little lady?"

Hawke just stared back at him. She felt Luffy moving on, heading for the stairs.

"I will never forgive you," she said again, before turning and following her brother.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Magellan finally caught up to them on the third level, but Ivankov stayed back to face him alone, letting the rest go on up to level two, where Inazuma waited for him.

It seemed that Buggy the Clown and Mr. 3 had begun their own riot on level two, most of the prisoners were already free and were fighting the guards. The demon guards showed up again, but they were defeated by Crocodile, Jinbei and Luffy as before.

By this time, Hawke was feeling quite strained, but she needed to stay strong to help Luffy. And this was made abundantly clear when Magellan appeared, having supposedly defeated Ivankov and Inazuma. And Luffy and Mr. 3 stayed back with some of the other prisoners to fight him with wax, which seemed to be the only substance capable of withstanding Magellan's poison.

Hawke wanted to stay with Luffy, but Jinbei thought it would be better if she went with him and the others to the very top to try and steal a warship.

"You can fly, after all, can't you?" the fish man asked.

Hawke nodded and it was decided that she would go on ahead.

"Be careful, Luffy," she called as she ran after Jinbei.

They made it out of the prison only to find that there were no warships around. They had all been ordered to sail away so the prisoners couldn't get them.

Hawke couldn't believe that they had come all this way for nothing. She scanned the horizon and gasped.

"Wait!" she shouted, "There are still some ships sitting out there in the fog, they didn't go that far!"

"Really?" muttered Jinbei, "I can't see anything."

"I guess they called her Sharp Eyes for a reason," Mr. 1 said dismissively.

This seemed to convince the Sea Knight.

He broke one of the doors down and said he could use it as a raft for some of them.

"If you can lead me in the right direction to start off with Hawke-san," the fishman said, "We can go steal a warship."

In the end, it was only Crocodile, Mr. 1 and Buggy the Clown who came on the raft. And Hawke flew ahead, leading Jinbei to where the closest warship was sitting.

When they were within range, all the warships in the area began firing at them, trying to sink Jinbei. Hawke tried to intercept as many as she could, but there were too many of them.

So to get them onto a ship, Jinbei shot the raft up on a pillar of water, sending it flying right onto the deck of the nearest warship.

Crocodile and Mr. 1 landed lightly, while Buggy made a face plant on the deck.

Hawke flew up and landed on the main mast, taking out their lookout in the process.

While Crocodile and Mr. 1 began taking out the marine crew, Hawke loosened the sails.

Suddenly, a huge wave came out of nowhere and pierced a hole through the cabin of the warship.

"Hey, Jinbei!" Hawke shouted down, "We need to sail this ship!"

"Ah, how careless of me," the fishman apologized.

Hawke rolled her eyes and turned her attention to the ships surrounding the one they were on. There were flurries of activity on all of them.

_I wonder what they're planning_, she thought and took off, soaring up into the mist.

She flew over and landed on top of the lookout for another ship. Quickly knocking him out, she sat in the crow's nest and listened to the orders being shouted around the ship.

"At this rate, they'll have control of that ship soon!" a navy officer shouted, "Sink it now!"

"Aye, aye sir!" the marines moved to follow his orders.

"Oh no you don't," Hawke dove out of her perch and flew once around the ship, slicing through each set of cannons as she passed them.

She repeated this for all the ships that were within firing range and then returned to the one they were commandeering.

"Good thinking," Mr. 1 grunted at her as she landed, "Now they can't fire at us."

Hawke nodded.

"Only the ones close enough" she panted, "I didn't want to go too far, there are still many warships with working cannons."

By this time, Corcodile and Mr. 1 had defeated the entire marine crew. Hawke ran over to the rail and looked out across the water. Her eyes could just make out the crowd at the doors of Impel Down.

_Wait, what's that? _

She squinted, she had thought she'd seen something large and reddish behind the crowd.

Just then, she cocked her ear and heard Luffy's voice coming out over the water.

"Hawke! Hurry! The poison guy is here!"

Hawke looked around frantically.

"There's no way we can make it back there fast enough!" she cried, "Jinbei!"

The fishman jumped onto the ship and took out a small snail phone.

"Luffy-kun, can you hear me?" he spoke into the device.

"Jinbei!" Luffy's voice replied.

"We're too far away from you," the Sea Knight said, "But you must keep going. Tell everyone to jump into the sea!"

"The sea?!" Hawke gasped, "Jinbei?!"

"You must trust me, Hawke-san," the fishman replied.

Hawke bit her lip and took a hold of the rail, looking back towards the prison.

They saw the giant head of Ivankov burst through the wall of Impel Down, with all the prisoners and Luffy riding in his hair! As they fell towards the water, away from Magellan's giant red poison fist, a whole school of whale sharks appeared and carried the prisoners on their backs so no one fell into the water.

Hawke gasped and then let a laugh escape her lips.

"Jinbei, you did it!" she cried, "Luffy got out!"

Just then she heard her brother's voice calling over the waves again.

"Oi Hawke!" he shouted, "Look at how cool this is!"

Hawke waved at him from the rail of the warship.

"Come on, Luffy," she called, "We have to catch up to Ace!"

She watched as he came bouncing onto the deck.

"Yosh!" he shouted, running over to her, "We managed to escape!"

Hawke gave him a silly wink.

"Yes!" she laughed, "Somehow we did it!"


	49. Chapter 49: Destination: Ace

**I know I've been pumping the chapters out recently, but I'm on a roll and I don't want to stop! :P**

**As the war at Marineford is coming up (which means we're getting close to the time skip) I was wondering if I should skip over what happens during the two years and just reference certain events later on, or if I should write a side-story or chapter with some highlights from Hawke's 2 year training period. Let me know what you think! **

**And thank you sooooooo much for liking my story! You are AWESOME! 3**

**Chapter 49**

**Destination: Ace**

Hawke stared out at the waves.

All the escaped prisoners of Impel Down mingled on the deck behind her. Luffy was standing beside her, both siblings had been in a sad silence for a while now.

Hawke reached out and took her brother's hand.

"Bon-chan was a great man," she said quietly, giving it a squeeze, "He wouldn't want us to be sad for too long… he would want us to press forward."

Luffy gripped her hand and turned to face her.

"Yeah," he said, meeting her eyes with a determined gaze.

Hawke gave him a small smile.

"Let's go talk with Jinbei," she said, leading Luffy along the deck.

She was still in a state of distress, but she couldn't let Luffy see that. She couldn't let him see how guilty, conflicted and torn up she felt inside due to the fact that Bon Clay had sacrificed himself for their freedom once again. As well as all the other inmates who had helped them and had not made it out.

But they had made it through the Gates of Justice and were now on the Tarai Current, there was no going back.

She led the way up to where the Sea Knight was speaking to Crocodile and Mr. 1, and for some reason Buggy was there.

Letting go of her hand, Luffy walked forward and began speaking to Jinbei. Hawke listened, but didn't participate in the conversation about where they were heading. She would go with Luffy wherever he went, and she knew he was heading for Navy HQ.

She stood back silently and watched the waters while they sailed onwards.

After a while, the snail phone rang and Luffy answered it, picking a fight with the Navy HQ and causing another uproar. Which Buggy somehow managed to quell and got all the prisoners on their side.

Hawke was still sitting quietly, her back against the rail. No one had given her much attention. Luffy was up sitting on the main cannon at the front of the ship and Jinbei was at the helm. The rest of the crew were wandering around, since there wasn't much sailing to do while they were caught in the Tarai Current.

Hawke's eyes watched Luffy's back as he held up Ace's vivre card.

_So we're going head first into a war_, she thought_, this would be a good time to have our crew back together…_

She lowered her head and rested it on her knees, her eyes tracing the lines on the planks she was sitting on.

_I wonder where they are_, she fidgeted around and raised her head, looking up at the clouds.

She got up and walked to the helm, watching the sea from Jinbei's elbow.

"Jinbei?" Hawke started quietly, "Do you think we can get through the Gates once we get to Marineford?"

The Fishman stood silent for a moment.

"We shall see," he muttered, "I cannot know what will happen, but we must do what we can."

Hawke kept her gaze on the water and offered no reply. She had hoped for a little more reassurance, but there wasn't much to be reassured about in this situation.

Sighing, she returned to her post at the rail and stood facing the water.

"You're restless."

Hawke stiffened as Crocodile's deep voice came from beside her.

She looked over and saw the ex-Warlord sitting on the rail of the warship. He was looking straight ahead, but Hawke was sure he had been addressing her.

"Of course I am," she said quietly, "A war is about to start and all I can do is wait here…"

"Worrying about it will only be a distraction," Crocodile blew out a cloud of smoke, "When going into battle, one must remain calm, planning ahead and forming a strategy."

Hawke raised her eyebrow and gave the man a confused look.

"W-well," she stammered, "I'll try, I guess."

Suddenly, a gull flew down to land on the rail beside her.

"Good morning, Princess," it clacked its beak and bowed its head.

Hawke turned to face the bird, surprised at its sudden appearance.

"Hello," she stammered.

"You aren't the regular crew of these kinds of ships," the bird squawked, "Something must be happening."

Hawke cleared her throat and nodded.

"We all just escaped from Impel Down, the great prison," she explained, "Now we're heading towards Marineford. There's going to be a war, if it hasn't started already."

The gull squawked again.

"No wonder there was so much activity there this morning," it said, "They were evacuating people onto ships like these and sending them out."

Hawke blinked.

"Well at least the Navy considers all the collateral damage they could have and gets the citizens to safety," she muttered, scowling.

The gull looked at her out of one eye.

"It doesn't befit a princess to be in this state," it said, clicking its beak, "You must be confident and sure even when under pressure."

Hawke stiffened.

"How do you all know what I am?!" she asked, letting some of her frustration leak through.

The gull cocked its head to the side.

"It's quite obvious to us," it said, "Other humans are such dull creatures. But you shine out."

Hawke gave it a questioning look.

"Shine out?" she asked, "What does that mean?"

"Quite literally what it sounds like," replied the gull, "You have a faint aura around you that we can see. Since you are the bloodline of our king, we can see you apart from the other humans."

Hawke cocked an eyebrow.

"Interesting," she muttered.

Then she took a sharp intake of breath.

"Did you, be any chance, see another ship like this up ahead of us?" she asked.

The gull paused, then nodded.

"Yes," it said, "There was group of them. They were approaching the large doors. The one in the lead had a different man on board, a prisoner I suppose. He was chained to a chair."

Hawke turned her eyes towards the horizon.

_So Ace is still ahead of us_, she thought, _we still have time!_

"Thank you," she smiled at the bird.

"It was my pleasure, Your Majesty," the bird clicked it's beak as it flew away, "Your father wishes you well."

Hawke blinked as she watched it disappear into the blue sky and sighed.

"My father?" she let out a confused whisper.

_Did it mean the Spirit?_ she frowned up at the sun, then she shook her head_, this isn't the time to be distracted._

She glanced around the deck and found Luffy still sitting up at the front of the ship.

"So you really can talk to birds?" a deep voice said from beside her.

Hawke jumped and spun around.

"Were you watching me?!" she snapped at Crocodile as he took a puff on his cigar.

"It's not like there's anything else happening on this ship," he grunted.

Hawke glared at him.

"Yes, I can understand birds," she said.

Crocodile stared down at her.

"What did that one say?" he asked.

Hawke debated on not answering, but decided that there was no harm in telling part of the truth.

"Just that Ace is going through the Gates to Marineford now," she said, turning away, "And that the Navy has evacuated the citizens."

She heard Crocodile grunt.

"You are more adept than you seem," he said.

Hawke glared at him over her shoulder.

"In your words: I have my uses," she spat mockingly.

_What is his deal?_ She wondered angrily, _it's like he wants to make me mad on purpose!_

Crocodile stared down at her, his eyes hard as steel. Then his mouth twisted into a grin and he let out a chuckle.

"It would seem," he said, then he paused.

Hawke stared back at him, growing more and more uncomfortable by the second.

"Oi, Hawke!" Luffy's voice interrupted the awkward scene.

The scout quickly turned to see her brother waving at her from his seat on the canon. She all but ran over to join him.

"What was Croc saying to you?" Luffy asked, "It looked like you didn't like it."

Hawke blinked and then smiled.

"He was just being weird," she said, "Asking me about my abilities and stuff like that."

"Oh," Luffy shrugged, "Okay then. As long as he didn't hurt you."

Hawke smiled and leaned her head on Luffy's shoulder.

"Don't worry," she said quietly, closing her eyes, "Just focus on saving Ace."

She felt Luffy shift his position a little.

"Yeah," he said determinedly.

There was a pause as they both watched the vivre card in Luffy's palm. It was slowly inching forwards, showing that they were heading in the right direction.

"Is that Ace-san's vivre card?" Jinbei's voice called up from behind them.

The siblings turned.

"Yeah," replied Luffy.

Jinbei looked like he wanted to talk some more, so Hawke and Luffy climbed down off the cannon and joined the Fishman at the helm.

"Ace-san told me a lot about you, Luffy-kun," Jinbei said, "Though he never mentioned you, Hawke-san."

Hawke smiled.

"That's because he didn't know me until a little while ago," she said.

Jinbei smiled before turning back to Luffy.

"I heard you always used to run around the hills together with him," the fishman continued.

"Yeah," said Luffy, "Me and Ace were always together."

Jinbei nodded.

"Ace seemed to have fond memories of those days of the past," he said.

Luffy smiled.

"Ace went out to sea three years before I did," he said, "He hadn't even eaten a devil fruit back then, but I could still never beat him."

"I suppose you haven't seen him since he left?" Jinbei asked politely.

"No," Luffy smiled and grabbed Hawke's hand, "I ran into him once in Alabasta. That's where he met Hawke for the first time too!"

Luffy eyes turned to the vivre card and he seemed to be lost in thought for a while. Hawke squeezed his hand and he looked up.

"Blackbeard," he muttered, "I ran into him once in Mock Town…"

Hawke blinked.

"I was wondering how you knew him," she said, "I never saw him before."

Luffy nodded.

"I still can't believe that Ace would lose to someone," he said solemnly.

Hawke squeezed his hand again.

"So you met Teach before," muttered Jinbei, "Well, I had a hunch from the way you spoke to him…The man he killed was the commander of Whitebeard's fourth division, Thatch. He was a good man."

Hawke stiffened.

_Blackbeard had killed his own fellow crew member!?_

"I simply wanted to be of help to old Whitebeard, to repay my huge debt to him," continued Jinbei, "So I spent a lot of time on his ship. But I never realized what Teach was planning! After that, Ace set of to sea by himself in order to give Teach punishment, as the commander of Whitebeard's second division."

Hawke bit her lip. It was bad enough that she had witnessed the suffering her eldest brother had gone through, that he was still going through. But now she knew that he had been captured and turned in by the man he had been searching for to punish!

She left Luffy and Jinbei and went to the rail again.

Buggy and a group of his admirers came up and became loud and rowdy.

Hawke ignored them and kept her gaze on the horizon. Suddenly her vision blurred and a strong smell filled nose. She drew back, coughing.

She looked over and saw Crocodile still puffing away at his cigar.

Hawke rolled her eyes and walked around to the rail on the opposite side of the hooked man.

As she leaned on the rail, she saw a rapid movement and glanced back at him. Crocodile had something in his hand, Hawke couldn't make out what it was, but he quickly thrust it deep into a pocket in his cloak. Then he raised his hand to his hook, where a small compartment was hanging open open near his wrist, and snapped it closed.

Hawke blinked.

_What was he hiding there?_ She wondered, watching the ex-Warlord.

He seemed to notice her gaze and glanced in her direction.

"What?" he asked sullenly, his eyes searching hers.

Hawke felt the colour rise in her cheeks.

"Nothing," she said, turning her face away.

She really didn't like being the subject of this man's gaze. Her mind went back to her time spent as his prisoner in Alabasta and she shivered.

Just then, a shadow fell across the ship. Hawke looked up and saw the huge doors of the Gates of Justice standing closed before them.

"We made it!" she gasped eagerly.

"We're still stuck on this side," muttered Crocodile.

Hawke checked herself. He was right, they needed to find a way to open the Gates. But how?

"I can try to punch it down!" exclaimed Luffy from behind her.

"Yeah," Mr. 3 mumbled, "We could try knocking on the door…"

There was a long groaning sound. Hawke looked up and saw a crack of light appear down the center of the Gate.

"What?" Hawke gasped, "Its opening?!"

"They opened!" Luffy said in awe.

"Even though the Navy said it'd never open for us!" exclamations were heard from all over the ship.

The ship was suddenly cast to one side as the waves and current caused by the Gate opening sucked them through.

"Well, whatever," laughed Luffy, "Let's go!"

The warship made it through Gate and sailed onwards.

"Well, vwe made it through," Ivankov sighed, "VI wonder when vyour father will show up."

Hawke and Luffy glanced back at him.

"Father?" Luffy asked.

"Well since his son is being executed," Ivankov continued in a hushed manner, "VI suppose he will want to come here."

Hawke blinked.

"They don't have the same father, you know," she said.

"What?" Ivankov froze.

"Yeah," Luffy laughed, "Dragon is my dad, but Ace's dad is Gold Roger. It's funny, but I don't think they ever actually met."

"What?!" shouted Ivankov.

"Ace'd probably not want me to tell you guys though," Luffy laughed, "Oh, that's a secret."

"WHAT!?" the rest of the prisoners had been listening in and now the ship was in an uproar.

"Oh, Luffy," Hawke sighed, "You're just like grampa…"

"Makes sense, I suppose," she heard Crocodile mutter to Mr. 1.

She glanced over at the pair. They were keeping to themselves, talking in low voices to one another.

Hawke eyed them warily and was about to approach them, when suddenly, the warship was hit with an extremely strong blast of wind.

"What's going on?!" someone wailed as they were blown past.

Hawke grabbed onto the rail and held on tight.

"The ship is being pushed backwards by the wind!" she shouted, looking around for Luffy.

She caught sight of him standing next to Jinbei.

"We were moving slowly before but at least we were moving!" Luffy was saying, "What's with this wind?!"

Then all of a sudden, the wind died down all together.

Hawke let go of the rail and looked around. There wasn't even a slight breeze, everything was dead calm.

"Hey, Jinbei!" Hawke turned to see Luffy hanging onto the fishman's cloak, "Try to hurry up please! We have to get there before Ace is executed!"

Jinbei turned to the young pirate.

"Do not worry, Luffy-kun," he replied, "We will definitely get there in time!"

Hawke breathed a sigh of relief. Her thoughts had been on the exact same line as Luffy's, but Jinebi seemed to be sure.

She looked over the side.

"Hey, guys!" she shouted, "Look!"

A bunch of prisoners joined her at the rail.

"We've started moving forward!"

"The current is picking up again!"

"Did you do something, Jinbei?" Hawke asked.

"I am just holding the wheel," came the reply.

Hawke felt a rising sense of anticipation.

They were in the final stretch now! Ace was just ahead, they could save him!

"Hey! Look at that!" someone cried out.

Hawke stiffened and turned to see a shadow fall across the ship.

_But surely we didn't get blown all the way back to the Gates of Justice?_ She thought, then looked up.

Her eyes widened and she gasped for breath.

"A- a wave?" she stammered.

The colossal wave towered over them, dwarfing the warship. It filled the air with a tremendous roaring sound.

"A tsunami!?" Hawke cried.

"H-Hey, Jinbei," Luffy stammered, "If this continues… I can't get killed by some tsunami out here! I.. I've got to save Ace!"

Jinbei held firm on the wheel and began barking orders.

"Pull in the sails!" he shouted, "Luffy-kun! We'll hold steady and ride the wave!"

This brought the crew into and all out panic. People were running around, considering jumping into the sea, saying their prayers.

"How many years have you been pirates?" Crocodile's loud voice made it through the roar of the wave, "Are you complete amateurs?!"

The prisoners running around stopped and looked up at him. Crocodile was sitting on the rail that looked down on the main deck.

"If we recklessly change course now, we will capsize immediately," he continued with a calm, but serious tone, "There's only one way out of this."

Hawke was struck by the effect his words had on the men and women on board. They were still terrified, but they took Crocodiles words seriously and now accepted what lay ahead of them.

_I mean, he's right_, Hawke thought, _but he sure has a way with commanding people…_

"Hold on tight!" shouted Jinbei, "Or you'll be pulled off by the wave!"

_Oh my god!_ thought Hawke as she dashed towards the rail and held on for her life.

Luffy grabbed the rail next to her and she wove her one arm around his.

"Just in case you pass out because of the water," she panted, "Now hold on!"

The ship was caught by the wave and was sucked upwards.

Hawke screamed in terror as the sea tilted and became their horizon. Up and up they went, the wave pulling them to its frothy top.

Then they were upside down and plunged into the froth! The ship was tossed about like a leaf in a hurricane. The roaring sound was so loud Hawke couldn't even hear herself screaming, though she was sure she was doing so at the top of her lungs. She felt the pressure of Luffy's arm on hers and looked over to see he was just as terrified as she was.

Then, with a sudden jerk and a popping sound, the warship was spat out on top of the wave and the world was the right way up again.

And then everything stopped.

Hawke froze, looked around, and then loosened her grip on the rail.

"What's going on?" Luffy wondered aloud.

"Everything's stopped," Hawke reported, going to the edge of the ship.

She looked down and gasped.

"It's frozen!" she exclaimed, "The whole wave is solid ice!"

"What the hell?!" Buggy ran over to see for himself, "We're trapped in ice?! Now we can't go anywhere at all!"

Hawke caught sight of a figure walking on the ice.

"Crocodile?" she muttered.

"Take a look below," the hooked man, called back to them, "There's your answer."

Hawke and the others quickly joined him at the precipice of the wave.

She gasped as she saw what lay below them.

They had reached Marineford! The wave had been stopped right above the Navy HQ!

"Whitebeard!" Jinbei muttered.

Hawke followed his eyes and saw the four large ships sitting in the crescent shaped bay in front of the fortress. And on the largest of those ships, she could make out the giant, muscular form of the strongest man in the world.

"Whitebeard," she muttered in awe.

"The battle has already begun!" shouted Ivankov.

Hawke turned her attention to the bay itself, which seemed to also have been frozen. There were forms milling about everywhere across the ice. The sounds of clashing swords and gun shots rang up to the through the air.

"This must have been his declaration of war," Jinbei said, motioning to the wave under their feet, "And Aokiji must have frozen it."

"Listen up, guys!" Luffy's voice jolted Hawke out of her observations, "I've got an idea for how we can get past this!"

Hawke turned around.

"Yes," she said, "Now that we've gotten this far, we have to hurry!"

"We've got less than three hours until they execute Ace-san," said Jinbei.

"So what's your plan, Luffy?" Hawke asked as she climbed back onto the ship.

"We slide down the ice!" he declared loudly.

"What?!" shouted Buggy, "You want us to slide down the frozen wave?!"

"That's our only choice!" stated Luffy, "First off, we have to break out of this ice!"

Hawke saw that this was probably the only thing they could do, but it would be difficult.

"This is a warship though," she muttered, "It's not going to be moved easily."

Luffy turned to her.

"If we work together," he clenched his fists, "I know we can do this!"

Hawke smiled.

"Of course we can!" she agreed.

Just then, the ringing of the snail phone rang through the ship.

"Attention all ships!" it declared, "Our target is site TOTTZ. Change formation and initiate Operation Three. Make haste with the preparations."

"It's a marine broadcast," Hawke said listening closely.

"Once the preparations are complete," the snail phone continued, "We'll push the schedule forward and execute Ace! Over!"

There was a shocked silence.

"What?!" shouted Hawke.

"Luffy-kun," Jinbei called.

But Luffy wasn't listening.

"Let's hurry!" he shouted, and took off running.

Hawke followed. They needed to get down there NOW!

"Vwe can't wait any longer," she heard Ivankov say, "There's no time to argue about this! Everyone! We're going with Straw-Hat-Boy's idea!"

Hawke and Luffy were joined by the other strong members of the group and they all began attacking the ice that held the hull of the ship.

As they made contact, cracks suddenly appeared all along the crest of the frozen wave.

"Wait…" Hawke stammered as the cracks widened, "That's the wrong way!"

There was a loud popping sound and the ice gave way under their feet.

Then they were falling. Falling fast, with the warship right above them.

"We're going to die!" wailed Buggy.

"This is all your fault!" Crocodile exclaimed angrily.

"Why are vyou blaming vme?!" Ivankov shot back.

Hawke took out her wings and flew down alongside Luffy as they plummeted towards the sea.

"We'll die!" shouted her brother, "The ocean is ice!"

Hawke glanced down and rolled her eyes.

"You're made of rubber, Luffy," Hawke said as she reached him, "Remember?"

"Oh right!" her brother realized, "I'll be fine."

"Well that'll make you two the only survivors," wailed Mr. 3 as he fell by.

"Here, Luffy," Hawke held out her hand, "Climb on."

Her brother wrapped himself around her and she flew down alongside Jinbei.

"I'd help you if you weren't so big," she said apologetically.

"Well, that can't be helped," the fishman replied grumpily.

Hawke glanced at the war zone below them.

"There's a spot of water over there!" she pointed, calling over her shoulder to the rest of the people falling, "Try you best to land there!"

Then the ice came up to meet them and the warship crashed into the ocean. The splashback washing over Hawke as she tried to fly Luffy and herself to safety.

When the ship steadied itself, she landed on the portion that remained upright and put Luffy down.

She saw Jinbei dive into the water.

_Right,_ she thought, _there were some devil fruit users!_

"Luffy, I have to go help Jinbei!" she said as she dove into the water, "You find Ace!"

She dove down, swimming after Mr. 3's funny hair. She could see Jinbei retrieving Buggy and a few others, but she could only manage one. Although, looking around, she couldn't see any more people around her. She grabbed Mr. 3 by the arm and began heading for the surface.

Hawke clambered onto the deck of the warship and dragged the unconscious man out of the water and laid him down.

"He'll be okay here," she muttered, "Now, I need to find Luffy and-"

"AAAAACCCCCEEEE!"

Luffy's voice rang out, loud and clear.

Hawke whirled around and flew up, locating her brother standing on the rail, which was now the highest point on the ship, and facing the marine fortress.

She landed and followed Luffy's gaze.

She saw the execution platform and the five figures on it. But her attention focused on the one kneeling in the middle.

"Ace…" she whispered, "We got here in time!"

"Luffy! Hawke!" they heard their brother's voice calling back to them.

"ACE!" they shouted back in unison.

Luffy laughed and grabbed Hawke's hand.

"I finally found you!" he shouted.

Hawke heard footsteps coming up from behind them and turned. The rest of their group were making their way up to the front of the ship.

They took their places behind the siblings.

"VI'd expect no less from the Navy's full force," Ivankov stated, "They're not to be underestimated."

"Get ready for me world!" shouted Buggy, who seemed to be having another delusion of grandeur.

Crocodile lit another cigar and stepped forward, taking his place behind Hawke.

Jinbei was also silent.

"Ace!" shouted Luffy, "I'm here to save you! We're all here to save you!"

Hawke could almost feel the pressure of all the eyes that were now trained on the group. She rustled her feathers nervously, realizing that her wings were still outstretched.

A cry went up through the warring crowd below them.

"They're the escaped prisoners from Impel Down!"

"Crocodile?! And Ivankov from the Revolutionary Army!"

"Even the Sea Knight, Jinbei!"

"That-That's the Dark Angel!"

Suddenly, one of the other figures up on the execution platform called out.

"Is this your answer then, Jinbei!?"

Hawke blinked.

_He's the Fleet Admiral!_ She realized, _Sengoku!_

"That's right!" Jinbei returned, "I quit being a Warlord!"

Hawke felt a sudden movement behind here and turned.

"Huh?" she muttered, "Where's Crocodile?"

"There he is!" shouted Buggy.

The group turned to see the ex-Warlord moving quickly over the battle field, heading straight for the largest ship in the bay.

Hawke narrowed her eyes.

"He's headed for Whitebeard," she said, "Luffy!"

She felt Luffy leave her side and dash after Crocodile.

She watched as her brother intercepted the hooked man and deflected his attack on Whitebeard.

Then she watched as Whitebeard confronted Luffy.

"Have you come to save your brother?" his booming voice coming across the ice.

"That's right!" replied Luffy.

Whitebeard raised his staff-like weapon and slammed it down.

"Don't you understand what you're up against?!" he shouted, "Someone like you doesn't stand a chance here!"

She saw Luffy tense and bit her lip.

"Shut up!" her brother shouted back, "That's not for you to decide! I know perfectly well! You wanna be the Pirate King, don't you?!"

"Oh, Luffy," Hawke rested her forehead on her palm, "You're so predictable."

"I'm the one who'll be the Pirate King!" Luffy shouted for all the world to hear.

And the world did hear.

Everyone stopped what they were doing to watch as Whitebeard raised his weapon and spun it in the air. He brought it back down to earth with a thunderous bang. Hawke felt the shockwave from it from where she stood.

"You're damn cheeky," Whitebeard chuckled, "I won't show you mercy if you slow me down, you spoiled brat!"

"I'm going to do what I want!" exclaimed Luffy as he turned to face the battle, "I'm going to save Ace myself!"

Hawke smiled. She beat her wings and flew over to Luffy's side.

Whitebeard turned his head as she landed and gave her an intense stare.

"You must be-," he began.

"Ace's little sister!" Hawke finished before him. She wanted the old man to know about her relation to his commander.

The great man looked a little taken aback, then he grinned.

"That damn brat," he said, almost to himself, "Never told me anything about there being _another_ one."


	50. Chapter 50: The War of the Best

**Chapter 50**

**The War of the Best**

Hawke followed Luffy as he jumped down and began fighting his way towards the execution platform.

She tore through the crowd, dodging swords and fists alike.

_I need to stay with Luffy_, she thought_, I need to have his back. He's always so reckless and doesn't think about what he's doing! _

Of course, being a wanted rookie and the Dark Angel, they were immediately targeted by pretty much everyone on the battlefield.

They hadn't made much headway before their first major enemy, Kizaru, the Light man, appeared blocking their path.

"He's going to blow us away!" she panted.

She found the battlefield blurring suddenly and she saw visions of Sabaody flash before her eyes. Kizaru's foot hanging menacingly over Zoro as he lay helpless at his feet. Hawke felt her throat constrict.

She was shocked out of her flashback by a sudden explosion.

Looking around in a daze, Hawke saw Ivankov facing off with the Admiral.

"Keep going, Straw-Hat-Boy!" the okama shouted, "I'll keep him busy!"

Just then, Bartholomew Kuma decided to join the fight and began firing lasers at Ivankov.

"Iva-chan!" shouted Luffy.

"Don't worry about him!" Hawke panted as she cleared her head, "Let's go!"

Together, they tore across the ice once again. They hadn't gone far though, when they were attacked by a group of marines.

"We don't have time for this!" Hawke gasped.

She grabbed Luffy's hand and flew up over the marines. They hit the ground running and soon had to battle their way through another group of soldiers. And they were just clear of that obstacle when Gekko Moria decided to join the fight and began attacking them with his zombies.

"We're getting nowhere!" Hawke panted as she cut down a centaur zombie and whirled to defend against a marine.

"We need to get to Ace!" Luffy shouted back as he punch three marines in the face.

Suddenly, a cry echoed across the battlefield.

"Keep away, Luffy, Hawke!"

Hawke looked up to see Ace on the execution platform, his eyes filled with fear.

"You oughta know already!" Ace shouted down at them, "You and I are all pirates! You should be sailing however you want!"

Hawke sliced through another group of marines.

"Me, I have my own adventures!" Ace continued, "Me, I have my own friends! You have no right to interfere with that!"

Hawke and Luffy landed back to back. Encircled by marines.

"Weaklings like you guys coming to rescue me…" Ace screamed down at them, "Do you think I'm gunna let that happen!? That would be too humiliating!"

Hawke sliced through the arm of a man trying to hit Luffy in the back, then ran on behind him.

"Go back! Luffy! Hawke!" Ace screamed, "Why did you come?!"

Hawke ran side by side with Luffy. Their goal the same, their hearts the same.

"I'm your sister!" Hawke screamed back.

"I'm your brother!" shouted Luffy at the same time.

The marines around them seemed to stop their attacks for a moment.

"Just then… he definitely said ""brother"…"

"She said she was his sister?!"

"That means they're also Roger's kids!"

"Ace's parents died after he was born! There's no way he could have younger siblings!"

But Hawke and Luffy sped on past them without a second glance.

"Those stupid pirate rules," Luffy panted, "I've never heard of them!"

"Don't you get it!" shouted Ace.

Another wall of zombie minions loomed up ahead of them. But this time, a wave of sea water was launched at them, removing their souls.

Jinbei jumped out of the water alongside them.

"Luffy-kun, Hawke-san," the fishman said, "Leave these zombies to me."

"We're counting on you!" Hawke smiled.

Suddenly, a voice rang out over loud speakers.

"What are you doing?! They're just rookies, don't let them dictate their way!"

Hawke looked up and saw Sengoku standing on the execution platform.

With these words of encouragement, a giant marine appeared and began facing off with Luffy and Hawke. He swung his giant club down, but both of them jumped to safety. Hawke took out her wings and flew up, dodging the giant's attacks.

"Monkey D. Luffy was raised with his sworn brother, Ace and his sworn sister, Hawke, the Dark Angel," Sengoku continued over the loud speakers, "But Luffy's actual bloodline makes him the son of the Revolutionary, Dragon!"

The giant raised his club to strike at Luffy, but Hawke managed to block his blow with her sword.

"Go, Luffy!" she shouted.

Luffy blew his fist up in his gear third mode and struck the giant right in the face.

"Ace!" shouted Luffy.

Hawke flew up beside where her brother was flying through the air.

"Ace! Say whatever the hell you want!" she shouted.

"I'm saving you, even if I die!" Luffy screamed at the top of his lungs.

The giant fell with a colossal thud. But when the dust cleared, Hawke found that they were entirely surrounded by marines.

"Don't let them move an inch!" Sengoku's command came down, "Don't let rookies have their way! Captured the Dark Angel!"

With that, the marines charged.

Hawke was attacked from all four sides. It was all she could do to keep Luffy in her sight. She slashed and sliced, dive bombed and kicked, trying everything she could to push through, but the waves of marine soldiers were never ending.

That is, until a sudden shift in the marines ranks. They kept up their fire, but they began to retreat up off the ice.

_What?_ Hawke flew up into the air and saw that new warships had come around, encircling the pirate ships at the back of the bay, _I don't like this…_

Just then Luffy called to Jinbei and Ivankov.

"I want to make a straight line to Ace!" he shouted.

The three of them made a simultaneous attack and blasted a huge swath through the marines' ranks.

Hawke ran along with them as Moria faced off with Jinbei and Kuma faced off with Ivankov. Then, Smoker appeared out of nowhere and attacked Luffy. Before Hawke could intervene, Smoker had Luffy pinned down with his sea prism jutte.

Luckily, the Empress Boa Hancock took on Smoker and gave Luffy the key to Ace's handcuffs.

"I think she loves you, Luffy," Hawke let out a small giggle as she ran, "When did you two meet?"

"Who, Hancock?" Luffy panted, "I landed on her island when the bear man threw me."

Hawke smiled.

"Well now that we have the key, let's get to Ace!" she panted, fending off an attacking soldier.

The siblings ran on and were soon confronted by Donquixote Doflamingo and Bartholomew Kuma, or rather, the Pacifista PX-0, since his entire body had been replaced by machinery. Ivankov was still there and fighting, but Luffy and Hawke got caught in the cross fire and Hawke was blasted away by one of the laser attacks.

She fought her way back to Luffy's side just as he ran into Dracule Mihawk.

"Well, Fate?" the master swordsman said as she skidded to a stop, "Will the lives of two promising children from the next generation… end here? And if not, how will they escape the Black Blade?"

"You don't have time to fight someone as strong as him, Luffy," she panted, "You have to save Ace, you have the key! Go!"

Hawke watched as Luffy ran past her and got lost in the crowd. Then she turned to Mihawk.

"You have no chance of standing against me," the man said, taking out his blade, "Why do you throw your life away so easily? Especially one so supposedly important?"

Hawke put her knives away and took out her sword.

"I would give my life for my captain and my brother," she said as she squared off, "And if I can stop his life from being taken, I will do it!"

Mihawk eyed her for a few moments.

Then he raised his sword. Hawke prepared for the attack, but instead the aim of the black blade turned and followed Luffy as he ran away.

"You're still in range," he muttered.

Hawke watched in horror as Luffy was almost struck down by Mihawk's attack.

"I said I was your opponent!" she cried, diving towards him.

As she was about to close the distance between them. A figure stepped in her way.

"I would expect no less from Ace-san's brother and sister," the fishman said calmly, "I will not let you lay a finger on these youngsters even if it kills me!"

"Jinbei!" Hawke gasped.

"Why would you go so far?" Mihawk actually sounded confused.

"I wish to save Ace-san," replied Jinbei, "Even if I can't stop this battle, there is still hope to save the seas and that hope is these two young ones here."

Hawke followed his arm as it pointed to Luffy and saw that he was stuck in some rubble.

Without a backwards glance, she lept up, spread her wings, and flew over to him. Quickly extricating him from the rocks and ice.

Hawke pulled her brother up.

"Come on," she gasped.

But Luffy was looking to the sky.

"What is it?" Hawke looked up and shielded her eyes.

It was Mihawk, and he was ready to strike!

"How is he in the air?!" Hawke exclaimed as she raised her sword.

Mihawk plummeted down and met Hawke's blade head on. The force pushed her back against the rubble, the rocks piercing and tearing at her from behind. Hawke cried out and used all her strength to push Mihawk off of her.

The swordsman stepped back and turned to Luffy.

Hawke was a little annoyed at this.

"You still won't face me?!" she cried, pushing herself forward.

"You have nothing to fight me with," Mihawk replied in his calm, level tone.

"What?!" Hawke exclaimed, "Yes I do, I have my-"

Hawke looked down at her blade and gasped.

It had been cut in two, only the hilt remained clenched in her hand.

"You were extremely lucky that that stroke left your arm intact," Mihawk said, still not facing her.

"My sword…" Hawke still couldn't quite register what had happened, "It's gone…"

"Damn you!" shouted Luffy, "That was Hawke's sword!"

Hawke looked up to see him attacking the great swordsman.

All thought of her destroyed weapon left her mind immediately and she ran out.

"No, Luffy!" she cried, "You can't fight him! You have to keep going!"

She saw Mihawk ready his attack and ran full tilt at her brother.

_He can't hit you!_ She thought frantically as she collided with Luffy and forced him to the ground.

There was a wooshing sound above them, and as Hawke stood up again, she saw the extent of the damage she'd just saved herself and Luffy from.

The entire top half of one of the frozen waves that had towered over them was cut off! It flew into the air and shattered into chunks and pieces that then rained down onto the battle field.

"Now what will you do?" Mihawk's voice rang out as the sound of his blade filled the air.

"Run, Luffy!" Hawke shouted as she pushed him out of the way and then dodge the attack herself.

But Mihawk threw attacks at both Hawke and Luffy, slowly separating them from one another, since all they could do was dodge him.

"You are being forced further and further away from your brother!" Hawke wasn't sure if Mihawk was talking to Luffy, to her or to the both of them.

"Damn!" she heard Luffy shout.

_No, Luffy!_ She thought as she saw him heading in for an attack.

She quickly sprouted her wings since Mihawk hadn't attacked her and withdrew all her knives. Holding them splayed in each of her fists, she launched herself at Mihawk, coming between his blade and Luffy.

A shockwave pushed itself through her body. Hawke could feel her bones vibrating, but she clenched her jaw and held her hands firm. Her knives cut into the flesh between her fingers, but she kept them up. All eight of them were up against Mihawk's blade, holding it inches away from her face. Her wings extended fully, shielding Luffy.

Mihawk gave her a startled look, then lowered his weapon.

"I see now why that sword was of no use to you," he said, "It was not your true weapon."

Hawke's knees buckled and she sank to the ground.

"Oi, Hawke!" she heard Luffy from behind her.

_He's still here?!_

Hawke spun her head around and shouted at her brother.

"What are you still doing here?!" she cried, "Get to Ace!"

Luffy looked taken aback, but he nodded, stumbled backwards and ran off.

"A valiant effort," said Mihawk, raising his blade, "But he can't escape."

"NO!" Hawke cried as she tried to stand, but her legs were still to shaky from taking the previous blow.

The attack cut through the ground and miss Luffy by a hair, and only because he slipped on the ice.

Mihawk was about to launch another attack, when a man came out of nowhere and blocked him.

"Commander of Whitebeard fifth division, Flower Blade Vista," Mihawk said.

"Nice to meet you, Hawk-Eye Mihawk," the man named Vista replied, "So you've heard of me?"

Hawke collapsed with a sigh of relief.

They'd been saved again!

She forced herself to stand and took off after Luffy. But as she ran by the two men locked in a sword fight, she noticed how Mihawks eyes seemed to follow Luffy, and a look of understanding spread across his face.

_Well that's a little strange_, she thought before catching up with her brother.

As she drew alongside him, she glanced up at the execution platform.

"No!" she gasped, "They really are going to execute Ace early!"

The two guards posted in front of Ace had their swords crossed in front of him. The signal that the ceremony was about to start!

"Ace!" Luffy shouted as they tore across the battlefield, so close, yet so far at the same time.

Hawke looked up at the execution platform again and grit her teeth. She quickly jumped on the back of a marine and sliced off his cape. Jumping down, she wrapped the cape around herself, covering her body.

"Luffy," she said, "Give me the key!"

"Eh?" her brother gave her a questioning look.

"The key," Hawke held out her hand, "I can fly up there without anyone noticing."

"Okay," Luffy handed her the small iron key, "Make sure you get there!"

Hawke nodded and turned suddenly into the crowd, quickly becoming lost from view.

She ran around to the edge of the wall without being recognized and came up under one of the navy's broken cannons and took out her wings.

There was an explosion and a cry from behind her. Turning, she saw Luffy being thrown back, but then being caught by Jinbei.

Hawke set her features.

_Once we get out of this war_, she thought, _I'm going to thank you in person for all that you've done for us, Jinbei._

She quickly turned and flew up and around the cannon. Since it was out of commission, there were no soldiers near it. Throwing the cloak aside, she quickly flew higher, skirting the tops of the buildings within Marineford itself, making her way as quickly as possible to the place behind the execution platform.

She landed on the wall bordering the town behind the platform. From her vantage point, she could see the extent of the battle. There were many more pacifistas fighting around the edge of the bay that she hadn't noticed before. They were slaughtering pirates and marines alike as they shot laser after laser after laser.

And from this view, she saw something strange happening on the bow of Whitebeard's ship.

There seemed to be a man standing beside him. Whitebeard took a step forward, then the man suddenly turned and stabbed the Yonko right through the chest!

Hawke looked on in awe. Everyone who noticed cried out, pirate or soldier.

_This is my chance_, she thought, _Sengoku and everyone's attention will stay focused over there for a bit._

She slowly stepped out onto the wall, then jumped. On silent wings she shot over to the execution platform and lay herself flat on the wooden boards.

She looked up and clenched her jaw. The platform was much larger than she had expected. The distance between her and Ace was pretty far, considering she had to crawl if she didn't want to be see by someone below.

She could hear someone shouting above the sounds of the battle, but she focused on inching her way slowly forwards. She stopped every time Sengoku or the guards made a movement. She also noted that Garp was sitting beside Ace.

_Grampa!_ She thought, _this might make things a little harder_.

Suddenly, there was a massive cracking sound and the ice walls surrounding Marineford fell, leaving the water open.

_What's going on?_ Hawke wondered.

She couldn't see anything from where she was, but now Sengoku was shouting something about someone being on the move.

_Almost there_, she encouraged herself.

She was within a few feet of Ace's hands now and so far had not been noticed. The slow pace was killing her. She wanted to run and save Ace as fast as she could, but if she was found out, then there wouldn't be another chance like this again.

Just then, Hawke heard someone running up the stairs behind her.

_Oh no!_ she thought, _I can't get caught now!_

Quickly rolling to the edge, she grabbed onto the metal supports and swung herself underneath the platform, holding herself flat against the boards now at her back.

_Damn_, she thought, _all my progress was for nothing!_

She held herself still as the person reached the top and addressed Sengoku.

"Are you ready yet!?" the Fleet Admiral snapped.

"Not yet, sir!" was the reply, "The ice is really thick!"

_Ice..._ thought Hawke, _their plan involves moving the ice?_

Then, the world turned upside-down.

Hawke struggled not to cry out as her hand slipped and she dangled from the beams.

_What is going on!?_ She thought frantically.

Then, looking out at the battle field, she gasped.

The whole world had been tilted. The sea floor was rising to the surface in great, heaving chunks. The water flowing off of them like waterfalls.

The whole complex of Marineford had tilted and cracked. Hawke scrambled to conceal herself amongst the beams again as marines looked up and gawked at the damage.

"What happened to the walls?" Sengoku's voice came down from above her, "I don't care if we shut down the city's whole electricity grid. Use all the power we have to mobilize those walls!"

"Yes sir!" came the reply, then some footsteps as the soldier retreated back down the steps.

_Walls?_ Thought Hawke as she climbed up and peeked over the edge of the platform, _do they mean to put walls up to keep everyone in the bay? And with the Pacifistas down there… I have to hurry!_

Just then, the walls came up. Great steel structures that were impervious to swords, bullets, and cannons. They were, however, equipped with cannons themselves which were all pointed at the pirates in the bay. There was only one opening, where a giant's body had fallen and the wall wasn't strong enough to move it.

As Hawke snuck her way back onto the platform, a sudden roaring sound began. She squinted passed Sengoku and Ace's back and saw that there were meteors falling from the sky!

"We won't let you escape!" shouted Sengoku, "Melt the ice and take away their footing!"

Hawke gaped in horror.

They were going to melt the ice!? But then how could any of the pirates fight?! And the devil fruit users? Luffy!

Hawke clenched her teeth and shuffled forward on her stomach.

She was right behind Ace now. Hawke quickly felt for the key and plucked it from her pocket.

"The plan is being followed approriately," Sengoku's voice rang out, causing Hawke to jump and fumble with the key in the lock, "The execution of Portgas D. Ace will proceed."

_Almost…_ Hawke heard the click as the key fit into the lock.

"Eh?" she heard a grunt to her right, "WHA-!? HAWKE?!"

Hawke jerked upright. In doing so, the key fell out of the lock and down through a crack in the planks. Hawke watched it fall in slow motion.

_No…,_ she saw it disappear from sight, _No, I was almost…_

With horrified eyes, she looked up and met her grandfather's gaze.

"Grampa…" she whispered, a tear falling down her cheek, "How could you…?"

Garp was standing, his eye's bulging and his finger pointed right at her.

At her words, he flinched horribly and looked away.

"What?!" Sengoku whirled around and saw Hawke standing right behind Ace.

Ace turned and saw her over his shoulder.

"Hawke?!" he gasped, "What are you doing here?!"

She looked down at him with sad eyes.

"I had the key…" she whispered in disbelief, "I had it right… here."

Sengoku lunged forward. Hawke attempted to dodge him, but he caught her by her jacket collar. She was held out over the platform.

"This is an outrage!" the Fleet Admiral bellowed, his voice echoeing out across the bay.

Hawke saw all the faces turn to look up at her.

"That an enemy would be allowed to sneak behind our lines without us noticing!" Sengoku continued, "But that she be seconds away from freeing the man we deemed for execution!?"

Hawke could see the faces of the marines below her as she was dangled out into open space.

"She's the Dark Angel!" someone shouted.

"Indeed she is," Sengoku seemed to recover some of his composure, "And she is the step sister of Monkey D. Luffy and Portgas D. Ace. It would seem that we have managed to kill two birds with one stone here. We've recaptured the Dark Angel, now continue with the execution!"

Hawke gasped and began writhing like a mad thing.

"NO!" she screamed, "ACE! LUFFY, WHERE ARE YOU!"

There was a pause, then an answering scream came from over the wall.

"AAAACCCCEEE!"

Cannon fire thundered into the bay. Hawke could only watch in horror as she was dangled in front of the entire scene.

"No!" she cried, writhing and squirming in Sengoku's outstretched fist, "Stop it! You monsters! Stop it!"

"You think _we_ are the monsters?" Sengoku's voice came from behind her.

Hawke swung herself around to face him as best she could. She met his gaze and she saw him flinch as their eyes met. But she didn't care, she was glad, even. At this moment, she felt nothing but hatred for this man, hatred that was fueled by the despair of her failure at freeing Ace.

"You would corral people and trap them just to slaughter them like cattle!?" Hawke spat, venom in her voice, "You would execute one man to start a war that kills thousands?!"

She felt something pierce her heart as she looked at the man who had planned all this, the man who held both of her brothers' lives in his hands.

"I'm glad that I have the power to bring chaos or peace!" she screamed, her fists flying, trying to reach his face, "Because I want to bring your world the chaos into which you've thrown mine!"

Sengoku looked shaken as Hawke continued to try and claw at his face.

"How could you do this to anyone?!" she seethed, her voice coming out coarse and ragged, "How could you hold all that power in your hands and then do that to them!? He's my _brother_! And you're trying to take him away from me!"

Sengoku looked like he was deliberating quite seriously with himself for a moment. Then he looked up at her with a resigned expression.

"Well, we can't go back now," he said, his voice full of regret.

Just then, something erupted from the far side of the wall. It was long, slender, and blue. Hawke watched as it snaked through the air and came down below her, in front of the Admirals. It was water…

Hawke squinted as she saw something land, it was large. Then, as the water splashed down in a torrent, then drained away, she couldn't believe her eyes.

There was Luffy, his arm around a huge log, standing before her.

"Luffy!" she gasped, "You're alright!"

She heard a strangled sound from behind her.

"Lu-!" Ace's voice was as hoarse as her own, "Luffy!"

Luffy stood, bent double for a few moments. Then he looked up, seeing Ace, then Hawke.

"Give!" Luffy shouted, jumping into the air, "Them! Back!"

With a mighty roar, he threw the log at the admirals. Aokiji froze it solid, then Luffy stamped it into pieces that flew all over the place.

Then, once he had created a powdered snow screen, leapt up towards his siblings.

"Watch out, Luffy!" Hawke shouted.

But it was too late. Kizaru jumped up and intercepted him, sending Luffy flying back across the yard.

"On my mark!" Sengoku commanded.

Hawke froze, then began writhing even more ferociously.

"NO!" she screamed, "ACE!"

But she was powerless to do anything. Even as she took out her wings and tried to fly away, Sengoku's grip tightened on her and it was no use.

She watched the blades rise above her eldest brothers head.

_No…_ she thought_, this isn't how it's supposed to end…We were supposed to save you…_

The guards had the swords over their heads now, ready to strike.

"No!" Hawke pleaded, her voice frantic, "Stop it! Stop it! Please! I'm begging you! Stop this!"

Ace had his head bowed in defeat.

"Do it!" Sengoku gave the order.

The blades came down.

"ACE!" Hawke cried out in agony.

The blades were at his neck…

…

…

…

_That's not right_, Hawke thought slowly as she watched the guards fly backwards, _why are they moving?_

She felt a stinging sensation on her back and looked up, only to see the platform rising away above her.

_Am I falling?_

She saw the two cuts in the platform, as if a sword had just slashed into it. She saw Sengoku gripping his arm tightly, with a pained look on his face.

Her wings automatically extended and she righted herself in time to land safely.

Hawke stood, wings still outstretched and looked up.

Ace was alive! She could see him, still kneeling there!

_But what happened?_ She looked around at the crowd of marines surrounding her.

"Who did this?!" Sengoku's voice boomed out over everyone.

A figure suddenly appeared amongst the marines and a circle quickly formed around him. Hawke backed under the platform.

She searched frantically through the crowd, trying to find the person who had saved Ace and herself.

"What!?" she gasped as her eyes found their target.

"Bastard!" shouted Sengoku, "Considering your old grudge against Whitebeard, I had thought we were lucky…Crocodile!"

"Crocodile?!" gasped Hawke.

"You were hell bent on killing the old man," Hawke heard Jinbei's voice from somewhere, "Why the sudden change of heart?"

Crocodile fixed his gaze on Sengoku.

"That dying old man?" he snarled, "I'll eliminate him later. But right now… I don't want to see you enjoying victory!"

No sooner had those words escaped his mouth, Crocodile's head flew off.

"Oi, oi, Crocodile-man," a voice called out and Donquixote Doflamingo appeared, "So you're ditching me to team up with Whitebeard? It's enough to make a guy jealous, ya know."

Hawke watched as Crocodile's head reformed. And he turned to face Doflamingo.

"I don't team up with anybody," the hooked man said in a low, menacing voice.

"That's the same as brushing me off," Doflamingo replied, his voice equally as dangerous.

"More or less," replied Crocodile.

Hawke had had enough. She didn't really care about the reason Crocodile had stopped Ace's execution, just as long as he had done it.

She quickly snuck under the platform and began searching for the key she had dropped.

She caught a hint of a sparkle near the far corner of the platform base and ran over.

"Got it!" she gasped, hope welling up inside her again.

She quickly stuffed the key into her pocket and looked around.

From her uncrowded place. She could see Luffy fighting some marines off to her left.

_He'll be okay_, she said as she turned her attention to the platform above her head.

Just then, she heard a cry of pain. Spinning around, she saw Luffy had been impaled in the arm by Aokiji, the ice man.

_He's not okay!_ She stumbled forward.

"I'm indebted to your grandfather," the Admiral was saying, "But you have chosen your own death!"

Hawke withdrew her wings and knives and sped out from under the platform at lightning speed.

"Don't touch him!" she shouted as she used one knife to slice through the snow spear he had hovered over Luffy.

The other she embedded deep into Aokiji's shoulder.

The Admiral let out a grunt of surprise and pain and he fell to one knee.

"It's the Dark Angel!" someone cired out, "She's taken down Admiral Aokiji!"

Hawke wrenched her knife free.

Just then, Marco the Phoenix, first division commander for the Whitebeard Pirates, appeared and sent Aokiji flying into the side of Marineford.

And to add to the confusion, a huge pirate ship full of Whitebeard pirates suddenly rammed through the wall, scattering marines everywhere.

Hawke took a step back. Whitebeard himself appeared from the front of the ship and jumped down.

"Stand back, my sons," he said in a calm voice.

Then, without warning, he took one swing of his spear and the ground in front of him collapsed and buckled, throwing marines all over the place.

"Men!" shouted Whitebeard, raising his fist, "Save Ace and destroy the Navy!"

"Well looks like this'll turn into an all out brawl," Hawke muttered as the pirates advanced into the plaza.

"Come one, Luffy," she held the key out to her brother, "Sorry… I failed."

He looked up and took it.

"Don't worry," he said, "We can try again."

Hawke smiled and reached her hand down. Luffy grabbed it and pulled himself up.

The two faced the platform again and took off, ready to meet all three Admirals head on.


	51. Chapter 51: Tragedies of War

**Chapter 51**

**The Tragedies of War**

Hawke tore after Luffy, lunging at any soldier who tried to attack him from behind.

_Something's wrong_, she thought worriedly as she deflected a sword attack, _Luffy's losing his strength._

She saw her brother stumble and fall after sending three soldiers flying.

"Luffy!" she ran up beside him, "Luffy what's wrong?"

But her captain stayed on the ground, panting. His breath coming out in ragged spurts.

"Luffy!" Hawke knelt down, tugging frantically on his arm, "At least move, we can't-!"

A sudden pain seared across her back and she cried out. Blood sprayed down across the ground, across Luffy's arm.

_Where'd that come from?_ She wondered.

Hawke trembled for a moment, kneeling above her brother. Then she toppled sideways, landing heavily on the ground.

"H- Hawke!" she heard Luffy's voice, it sounded far away.

"Dark Angel Hawke!" another voice called out, sounding even farther away, "I, Momonga, stake my pride as a Navy Vice Admiral on stopping you and Monkey D. Luffy right here!"

Hawke was puzzled. Why did everyone sound so far away? Why was her back stinging? Why was there suddenly blood on the ground around her? Why couldn't she move?

"Hawke!" Luffy shouted, suddenly loud and close, "Are you okay? Say something!"

She could see her brother crouching in front of her. She smiled and gave him a thumbs up. He couldn't be worrying about her right now.

"Admiral Momonga has struck down the Dark Angel!" someone shouted.

Hawke frowned.

_No he didn't_, she thought, _I'm alright_.

She pushed herself up with her arms. But the movement suddenly caused her back to feel like it was being torn open. Hawke screamed in pain and fell back onto the ground.

_Damn it_, she finally realized what had happened_, that Vice Admiral must have cut my back while I was trying to get Luffy up!_

She grit her teeth against the pain and struggled to stand again.

_I can't fall now_, she screamed internally.

She heard Luffy cry out as the Vice Admiral landed his attack, then another.

_Luffy needs help!_ She staggered to her feet, crouching down. _Ace needs help!_ She straightened her legs and stood up.

The pain seared across her back again, but this time she didn't cry out. She could feel the adrenaline rushing through her body. She could feel the warm trickle of blood flowing down her back and legs. But she couldn't let this stop her! Hawke took a shaky step forward, then another, then another and then the pavement rushed up to meet her and she fell once more.

_No!_ she wanted to shout at her body, _what are you doing?! Get up! Get up!_

Hawke looked up and saw Luffy laying at Admiral Kizaru's feet. The Admiral delivered a swift kick to her brother and sent him flying out of her range of vision.

"Luffy!" Hawke cried, and then coughed, spitting blood out onto the ground.

She grimaced as it mingled with the dust and the dirt.

"Damn it!" she wiped her mouth and saw her jacket covered in more blood, "Not good."

She needed to stop her bleeding if she was going to have any hope of staying conscious.

Just then, Ivankov's voice bellowed out over the battle field.

"There he is! Straw-Hat-Boy! There he is, Jinbei!"

Hawke couldn't see anything from where she lay, facing the execution platform, but the fact that Jinbei and Ivankov were there and were helping Luffy encouraged her very much.

Hawke looked up and saw a fuzzy blue and gold thing flying towards Ace. But as he approached the platform, she saw the figure of her grandfather leap up and punch it down.

_So this is your choic_e, _Grampa,_ she thought, tears coming to her eyes, _of course it is… we're all pirates…_

"If you want to get past," Garp's voice rang out, "You'll have to kill me!"

Hawke felt tears stinging her cheeks as smoke filled the air. Her vision blurred as she heard footsteps drawing near. Her vision faded to black as she felt her body being lifted off the ground.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

A marine soldier quickly ran across the plaza, ducking and dodging the attacks that were flying wildly around him. His partner ran alongside him, shielding the limp girl in his arms from view with his uniform cape.

The two marines ducked, panting, behind an upturned slab of the wall of some building that had been destroyed.

"Are you sure you want to do this, Bran?" the second marine muttered as he removed his cape from the girl.

Bran laid Hawke on the ground.

"Just shut up and help me get her jacket off!" he snapped, fishing through his pockets for some bandages.

The two worked in silence for a few moments.

"Vice Admiral Momonga really got her good," muttered Bran, "Here, Gavin, turn her over and lift up her shirt. We've got to stop the bleeding."

Gavin sucked air in through his teeth, but did as he was instructed.

"We could get kicked out of the navy for doing this!" he hissed, "Helping a pirate, the Dark Angel no less, and in the middle of a war!?"

Bran tore off a strip of bandages with his teeth.

"I couldn't just let her bleed out!" he snapped, "She'd have died!"

"Exactly!" retorted Gavin, "Then the Dark Angel wouldn't be a threat! How can you still be friends with her even after she was discovered to be even more dangerous than Straw Hat?!"

Bran glared across at his partner.

"It's _because_ we're friends!" he whispered fiercely, "Tank or Meeko would have done the same thing."

Gavin pursed his lips.

"Maybe, maybe not," he muttered, "Where are they anyway?"

He got up and looked out around the slab.

"We lost them a while ago…" he said quietly, unable to hide the worry hidden in his voice.

"They're fine," Bran said as he finished tending to the girl's wounds and rolled her onto her side, "Come on, let's go find them."

Gavin turned and looked surprised.

"You're going to leave before she wakes up?" he asked, eyebrow raised.

Bran smirked and shrugged.

"She doesn't need to know," he said, "And I'm satisfied knowing I helped her."

Gavin smirked and shook his head.

"I'll never understand how you think," he muttered and stepped out.

Bran smiled at his friend as he followed back out onto the battle field.

His smile quickly turned to a look of horror as a pirate jumped out of the smoke and aimed his sword at Gavin.

Bran lunged forward, raising his gun, but he was too late. The pirate ran his friend through the chest and then disappeared back into the smoke without a second glance behind him.

"Gavin!" Bran shouted, running up to catch his friend.

"Damn it!" the wounded marine fell to his knees, coughing blood up onto the ground, "Stupid pirate!"

Bran lowered him down onto the ground.

"Hang in there!" he panted, taking out the rest of the bandages he'd used on Hawke, "You'll be alright!"

Gavin coughed again and rolled over, spewing more blood onto the ground.

"Hey Bran," he muttered, struggling to raise his hand and wipe his mouth, "You make sure the others make it, okay? Meeko and Tank…"

"What?" stammered Bran as he rolled his friend back over, "Don't talk like that! It's just one wound, you'll be fine."

Even as he spoke, the marine saw the size and location of the bloody hole and felt the beginnings of despair.

_It pierced his lungs_, he realized, blinking back tears, _and it's so close to his heart._

"It's just one wound," he repeated, his voice shaking, "Just hang in there!"

Gavin smirked at him, his eyes glazing over.

"I'm glad… I… helped someone… before-" but he finished in a fit of coughing, a gurgling sound coming from the back of his throat.

Bran tried to wrap the bandage around Gavin, but the wounded man gave another shuddering cough and lay still.

Bran felt his arms go weak. He sat there, stunned. His friend had just died in his arms...

_Gavin…_ he thought, _…how am I going to tell Meeko?_

A sudden anger swelled in his chest and he grabbed his gun with shaking hands.

"Don't worry, my friend," he said quietly, closing Gavin's eyelids, "I'll get the bastard pirate who cut you down."

With a passionate cry, Bran lept up and dove into the fray.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Hawke started awake as the sounds of explosions rang out, seeming to come from all sides.

"Luffy!" she jerked herself up, then let out a gasp of pain.

Looking down, she saw that her jacket was off, laying on the ground beside her, and her waist was wrapped in bandages.

"What?!" she gasped.

Looking around, she saw that she was sheltered behind a large slab of a fallen building. The sounds of the battle raged on from behind the concrete. Hawke looked behind her, but there was nobody there. She slowly, gradually, stood up and retrieved her jacket. There was a large slice across the back of it from when she'd been attacked and it was stained with her blood, but she put it back on anyways. Pain tore through her back, but this time, she had the strength to stand it.

_Someone took me out of the battle_, she wondered, _I wonder_ _who it was?_

She slowly hobbled around the edge of the wall to look out. Her movements still caused her pain, but it was much more manageable now that someone had bandaged her wounds. There was no sign of anyone around though, except the body of a fallen marine soldier, laying a ways off in the rubble.

_So much death_, she thought sadly, her eyes lingering on the bloodied cloak still flapping in the wind at his shoulders, _we need to get Ace out of here as fast as we can._

Hawke looked around one last time.

"Thank you," she said, in case her saviour was hiding somewhere nearby, and then took out her wings.

Miraculously, the slash across her back hadn't damaged them. She took off and soared upwards, hovering over the plaza.

What she saw made her clench her teeth. Jinbei was being chained down by a whole crowd of soldiers, two of Whitebeards top commanders had fallen to the Admirals, Whitebeard had four men hanging off his chest by the hilts of their swords. And as she watched, a fifth marine jumped up and launched a bazooka into the great pirate's face! And worst of all, she couldn't see any sign of Luffy. Her eyes went up to the platform and she gasped in frustration. They were readying another set of guards to go ahead with executing Ace!

"How long have I been unconscious?" she wondered as she flew over the crowd.

_There he is!_ She spotted the yellow shirt and the straw hat waving from his back, _Luffy!_

"Ace!" she heard her brother shout and looked up to see the executioners' swords raised.

"No!" she shouted, altering her course and heading straight for the platform.

For a second time, the order was given, for the second time the swords fell. Hawke strained her wings against a sudden hurricane force wind.

"Ace!" she cried, fighting with all her might to get to him, "Stop!"

She withdrew two knives and aimed them at the guards. But right as she was about to throw them, she felt a shockwave pass through her body. It rippled along her arms and legs. She could even feel it in her wings.

_Woah_, she thought as her vision blurred, _what's happening._

But she fought to stay conscious and let loose her knives. They flew straight and true, right at the guards. The guards who were falling...?

Hawke stopped and hovered in the air. She shook her head to clear it, the strange feeling passing away. The guards had suddenly collapsed, their swords falling to the ground. Her knives flew through the air where they had stood and clattered to the ground behind the platform.

"Ace is safe!" her heart was beating fit to burst and a shudder of relief passed through her body, "But what happened?"

Turning and looking down, Hawke stared in disbelief. Most of the battlefield was now still. Men were collapsing all over the place, just like the guards had!

"What?!" her eyes flew over the crowd, finding the one person that was still charging onwards, "Luffy?"

"Conqueror's Haki?" she heard Sengoku mutter, "That's a surprise."

_Conqueror's Haki?_ Hawke thought, _what's that? Did Luffy do something?_

She turned and saw that the eyes of Sengoku, the Admirals, and the pirates and soldiers left standing were all on Luffy, still running towards the platform like nothing had happened.

_Whatever happened,_ she thought, soaring down to retrieve her knives, _I don't like that they're all looking at Luffy._

She scooped up her weapons and then took off again. As she came in to land alongside Luffy, she took down three marines who were about to attack him.

"Hawke!" Luffy shouted, "You're alright!"

"Yep!" Hawke shot him a smile, "Was that you back there?"

"Huh?" Luffy gave her a questioning look, "What?"

Hawke shrugged.

They were suddenly joined by many of Whitebeard's allies. They had apparently been ordered to help out Luffy at all costs.

Hawke tore across the plaza. The platform was finally within reach again. The air was suddenly filled with a familiar sound as a streak of light shot towards her from her left. Hawke spun around to see Dracule Mihawk had launched an attack directly at them!

"Dodge it, Luffy!" she shouted frantically.

But before any of them could move, someone intercepted the attack and blocked it.

"What?!" Hawke gasped, "Mr. 1?!"

The knife man looked over his shoulder.

"Orders from the Boss," he said, "For the time being, we will confront the navy. Now go!"

"Right!" said Luffy and he and Hawke sped on.

Mr. 1 didn't seem to put up much of a fight, however. They had only gone a few steps when they heard Ivankov yell out a warning.

Hawke turned to see Mihawk bearing down on them again.

_I can't dodge this one_, she realized, "Run, Luff-!"

But the blow was intercepted again, this time by a gold hook.

"Crocodile!" Hawke gasped, stumbling back as the ex-Warlord suddenly appeared inches in front of her.

The two men stood facing off.

"You're in my way, Straw Hat… Angel," Crocodile said without turning around, "Get lost."

Luffy nodded and ran on. Hawke gave Crocodile's back one last glance before turning and following her brother.

And as she caught up to him, she saw that the way was clear! The Whitebeard pirates had managed to hold back all the marines leading towards the platform. As they ran, Inazuma appeared and cut the path ahead of them and lifted it so it led right up to Ace's knees.

"This is it, Luffy!" Hawke panted.

Four marines jumped onto the path trying to block their way. Hawke sped ahead and cut them down, clearing the way for her brother.

She spread her wings and followed closely as Luffy started up the ramp Inazuma had created.

They were almost there! Ace was right in front of them!

There was a loud crack and someone appeared on the ramp ahead of them.

"Grampa!" Hawke panted.

"Granddad!" Luffy shouted, "Please move!"

Hawke saw Garp's face contort with pain or anger, she couldn't tell which.

"There's no way I'll step aside!" Garp roared, "I am a Vice Admiral form Navy HQ! I was fighting pirates long before you were born! If you want to get past me, then it'll be over my dead body! Straw Hat Luffy! This is the path you chose!"

Luffy made a choking sound.

Hawke gasped and fought back tears.

"Grampa…" she whimpered.

"Hawke," Luffy said quietly over his shoulder, "Don't do anything..."

Hawke gave Luffy a questioning look.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

But Luffy just looked straight ahead and kept running.

_Don't do anything?_ She wondered.

She landed and slowly stopped running.

Standing back, she watched as Luffy approached their grandfather, using her wings to steady her as the path began quaking and cracking under Garp's weight.

"Please Granddad," shouted Luffy, "Let me pass!"

"I told you!" Garp replied, "Over my dead body!"

Hawke bit her lip as Luffy let out a conflicted groan.

"I can't do it, Grandpa!" he shouted, "Please move!"

But Garp stood fast.

"If you don't kill me, Ace will die!" he shouted.

"Never!" screamed Luffy.

The two of them were close enough to fight now.

"It'll happen no matter how much you hate it!" shouted Garp, "I'm not holding back! Luffy, I now regard you as _my enemy_!"

Hawke gasped and brought her hand to her mouth. Now she understood what Luffy had meant. This was the one fight she couldn't break up. She couldn't get between them and urge them to make up. This was the final fight. This was between her brother and her grandfather, it was for them to settle who won.

Luffy raised his fist. Garp did the same.

Garp charged, Luffy charged. Garp… missed. Luffy landed his blow and tossed Garp over the edge.

Hawke fought back tears as she saw her grandfather hit the ground, causing a large cloud of rubble to burst into the air.

"Grampa…" she whimpered as the pathway crumbled, causing her to take off into the air.

But then her eyes went to Luffy and saw his foot touch down on the platform.

"He made it!" she gasped, relieved and happy despite everything.

She flew closer as Luffy knelt down and began trying to unlock the hand cuffs. Then she saw Sengoku, he was growing.

"Luffy!" she gasped, "Watch out!"

The Fleet Admiral had swollen up into a giant golden figure. He towered above her two brothers, giving off odd waves of energy.

"Did you really think that I would let you get away?" Sengoku bellowed.

Hawke saw Luffy frantically try to insert the key, then saw him begin looking panicked and wildly searching around.

"What happened?" she muttered.

Then she saw the two pieces of the key falling to the ground.

"The key was broken?!" she gasped, then her eyes found Kizaru, his finger still raised and pointing at the platform, "Damn it!"

Sengoku bore down on Luffy and Ace.

"You are also a renowned criminal worthy of the death penalty!" the giant Buddha said angrily,"Now, as brothers, I will execute you myself!"

He raised his fist and started to glow all over.

_Not good!_ Thought Hawke as she sped through the air.

"Don't forget about their sister!" she shouted as she drew near.

Sengoku hesitated and glanced in her direction.

"Luffy!" Hawke shouted, "Balloon!"

She dove down and made straight for Sengoku's face, her knives glinting.

She brought them down, but the Fleet Admiral dodge it and her blades only cut through his golden afro. But she had succeeded in her goal. As Sengoku's fist descended, Luffy had the time to blow himself up into a balloon to cushion the blow.

Then everything happened at once. The platform broke and began collapsing, the marines fired all their cannon balls at Luffy and Ace, there was a guard falling with them. Hawke gasped as she realized it was Mr. 3. Then, there was a giant explosion and everything was hidden behind a curtain of black smoke.

_What happened?_ Hawke flew frantically around the edge of the dark cloud, Where was Ace? Where was Luffy?

Then a huge burst of fire erupted from the smoke, the heat making Hawke back away from the platform.

She squinted through the flames. She could have sworn she'd seen movement in there. Then, Yes! She did see something, and it was coming closer.

Her breath caught in her throat and she felt tears in her eyes. It was Ace! And Luffy was with him. And he was free!

"AAACCCCEEEE!" Hawke cried at the top of her lungs.

A roar went up all around the battlefield. The pirates shouted out their victory and Luffy's success.

But there wasn't too much time to be celebrating. The navy quickly resumed their barrage of fire at Luffy, Ace and Mr. 3. But now that Ace had his sea prism cuffs off, he blasted them with a huge column of fire. The heat wave pulsated through the air and caused Hawke to lose her balance in the air currents and fall to the ground. But she quickly sprang up again.

The area where her brothers were now fighting was easy to spot, since there were constant explosions of fire flying all over the place.

Hawke had landed quite far away, but she quickly began fighting her way back to them. She found a renewed source of energy and fought with all her strength. Suddenly, a rumbling sound could be heard over the roar of the battle. Hawke felt the ground under her feet start to tremble.

_Is this another one of Whitebeard's attacks?_ She wondered, turning.

She gasped as she saw what it was. The ship that had burst through the wall with Whitebeard was now charging itself across the ground. And it was headed right at her!

Hawke scrambled to get out of the way, but the force of the charge blew her away as the ship lumbered by. She tumbled over herself as she landed and had no sooner gotten to her feet again, then the world started to shake.

"Okay," Hawke grunted as she felt the ground jerked backwards under her, "This is_ definitely_ Whitebeard's fault."

She fell and felt her knees and palms scrape painfully against the ground, which dulled the spike of pain that flew along her back.

_What did he do this time?_ She wondered, staggering to her feet as the dust settled.

Hawke turned to face the place where Whitebeard stood, but she was pushed back by a sudden flood of escaping pirates.

"Follow the Old Man's final orders!" they were shouting, tears streaming down their faces as another loud crack was heard and the buildings of Marineford began collapsing.

_Whitebeard wants to sink this place, doesn't he?_ Hawke realized_, that's probably why he told his crew to run…_

Her eyes searched frantically through the crowd of faces.

Where was Luffy, where was Ace?

…

Something was wrong…

Hawke didn't know why she suddenly felt so sad. Tears ran down her cheeks as she fought off a couple of soldiers that were trying to gang up on one of Whitebeard's commanders as they retreated.

Something was _very_ wrong…

_I need to see Luffy_, she thought frantically, feeling a pressure building up in her chest_, I need to see Ace!_

Hawke stumbled around, trying to find her brothers. But she couldn't make out anything through the sea of fighting bodies and the smoke. She kept getting jostled and pushed back by the retreating pirates.

_Where are they?!_ She thought, running through the crowd.

She collided with someone and was sent flying onto the ground. With a grunt she raised her head and saw something bouncing towards her. It hit her arm and settled on the ground next to her.

Hawke squinted at it.

_A red bead?_ She wondered, _where did this come from?_

She picked it up and turned it in her fingers.

_Looks just like Ace's necklace... _

Hawke's stomach dropped. Her world spun as she lept to her feet. _Where was Ace?_

She whirled around, searching the faces on the battlefield, but none of them were him.

_Where was Ace?!_

Hawke could feel her breath becoming heavier, her throat was constricting. _WHERE IS ACE?!_

Suddenly, the world went dark, as if a shadow had passed over the sun. Hawke could hear her own breathing extremely loudly in her ears, as if it were being magnified.

_What's going on?_ She thought hazily as her eyes scanned across the battlefield, unseeing.

People's bodies were fading, becoming almost transparent. Hawke turned her head; there was something shining off to her right.

Ace!

She could see him! He was quite far away from where she stood, she had to squint to make him out. He seemed to be leaning on Luffy.

Hawke felt her legs moving off in that direction, but her eyes stayed focused on the shining figure of her brother.

_Wait…_ she frowned as Ace's figure shimmered suddenly, the light seemed to be getting dimmer.

Suddenly, the world seemed to turn on again. The light returned, people became solid once more, and the roar of the battle overcame the sound of her breathing.

Hawke blinked at the sudden change, but she kept moving in the direction that Ace was.

The crowd parted for a moment and Hawke saw them. She stopped and stared, uncomprehending, at the scene that was revealed before her.

Akainu was standing back, in front of her brothers. Luffy was holding Ace in his arms… Ace had a huge, bloody hole through his back.

Hawke looked down and saw that she was still holding the red bead.

_No…._

She let out a long, piercing wail.

"NO!" She screamed in agony, tears streaming down her face, "ACE!"

She took off again, stumbling over the ground. She wasn't aware of what was under her feet, her eyes stayed fixed on the silhouettes of her brothers. Slipping and sliding, she pushed through groups of marines and pirates, paying no attention to any of them, not even raising her weapons.

_It can't be_, she thought, _he was just fighting beside Luffy. He just got free. We were going to escape…this can't be how it ends!_

As she elbowed her way frantically through a large group of marines, she saw Ace's body falling out of Luffy's grasp.

He hit the ground and lay still. Luffy was looking at his hands, still held up in the position of supporting Ace. Then his face turned o the sky and he let out a heart-wrenching wail.

To Hawke, that sound meant that what she had dreaded when she'd first seen the two, kneeling on the battlefield, was true.

Ace hadn't made it.

Hawke felt a scream rip from her throat. The forms of her two brother's sat ahead of her. Luffy, with his face upturned, an expression of horror and disbelief frozen onto his features. Ace, laying at his knees, as though asleep, a smile on his face.

Hawke sprang towards them.

_It's a bad dream_, she thought frantically, _just wake up and everything will – _

She didn't get a chance to finish her desperate wish. Someone crashed into her side and sent her stumbling. Then something hit her in the side of the head with such force that she felt herself spin around before her legs gave out and she fell into darkness.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

A blurry form was hovering above her, but Hawke couldn't make out who it was.

_I'm conscious_, she realized, _but just barely. Ace!_

She reached her hand up towards the figure.

"Help…Luffy," she panted, her voice weak and frail, "…Ace… I need to…help…"

The figure above her moved their head.

Hawke felt the pull of the darkness again. Her vision blurred.

_No_, she thought faintly, _no, not again… Ace…Luffy…_

"Here, take her," a deep voice followed her down into the darkness, "Those idiots can't protect him properly anyway."


	52. Chapter 52: Trauma

**Chapter 52**

**Trauma**

Hawke woke with a start.

As soon as she regained consciousness her memories came rushing back to her in a fragmented, twisted, tidal wave.

"Luffy!" she yelled, sitting up with a jerk.

She cried out as a streak of pain shot across her back.

"Don't worry," said a low voice, "He got away."

Hawke started, which sent another wave of pain through her, and looked wildly around her, trying to take in her surroundings.

Her eyes moved jerkily, her vision blurring and shadowed. Breathing heavily, she rubbed her face and tried to focus. As she did so, she noticed that her body felt numb. Her mind ruled this fact to be unimportant and attempted to turn it towards her environment.

She was sitting in a bed in a small room. The walls and floor were made of wooden planks and she could hear waves and some gulls calling.

_I must be on a ship_, she had trouble thinking, _how did I get here?… I was at Marineford…where am I?_

"We barely got away ourselves, the Boss took a few hard hits," the voice continued.

Hawke turned her head and found the speaker.

There was a figure sitting in a chair that was backed against the wall on the far side of the room, across from her. He was shirtless, making the wounds on his chest clearly visible. Hawke's gaze slowly traveled up to his piercing eyes.

"Mr. 1!" she exclaimed in confusion as the man stood, crossing his arms.

Her mind was swimming. What had happened after Ace had…?

_Ace!_

She suddenly became aware of a pain in her hand. Her body was slowly losing its numbness.

Looking down, she saw her fist clenched so tightly that her knuckles were completely white. She also became aware that she still couldn't feel her hand.

"We couldn't get you to let that go, whatever it is," muttered Mr. 1.

Hawke had to use her other hand to pry her fingers open, revealing a small red bead sitting in the palm of her hand.

_No!_ her mind heaved and she felt a cold sweat break out over her body.

"Ace!" she cried, jumping out of her bed, "Where is he?!"

She immediately fell to the floor as her legs refused to function. The bead fell from her grip and bounced across the floor. She felt herself lunge after it.

"He died," said Mr. 1 sullenly.

"No…" Hawke whispered.

Her heart stopped and her breath caught in her throat. Her hand closed once again around the bead and buried it deep into her pocket before whirling around and facing the agent.

"No!" she cried, "We tried so hard! He was free! You're lying!"

Images immediately sprang to the front of her mind, but she refused to let them in.

"No!" she screamed, pulling at her hair, "No! Stop it! Get out! Go Away!"

She wobbled and fell to her knees once more, still clutching her head.

"No, it's not true!" she yelled, her fingernails digging into her cheeks, "It can't be true… it can't…"

"It is," Mr. 1's voice broke through her thoughts, "Fire Fist Ace is dead."

Hawke looked up at him. Her eyes streaming, showing all the pain that she was going through.

"No!" she let out a hoarse whisper, "Ace..."

She felt the rising sense of despair as her memories pushed their way in and she was forced to face the truth. Her world spun, she fell forwards onto her hands and vomited onto the floor.

A sharp, aching pain pierced her chest as the taste of bile filled her mouth. Hawke cried out and began clawing at her shirt.

"Stop!" she screamed, wiping her mouth as lines of blood began appearing through her clothes.

Mr. 1 stood over her, restraining her clawing hand.

"Calm down or you'll make more of a mess," he muttered.

Hawke looked up at him, her eyes wild, trying hard not to hyperventilate.

_She had seen it all with her own eyes._

Luffy holding their older brother in his arms… Ace falling, a smile on his face…. Luffy's heart wrenching wail.

_Luffy!_

She suddenly felt a strange sensation gripping her trembling body.

"I need to see Luffy," she said in a monotone voice, "He needs me right now."

She heard movement as Mr. 1 dropped her hand, but it barely registered. He said something, but she wasn't listening. Only one thought occupied her mind, controlling her body and her actions.

_Get to Luffy._

Hawke was staring blankly into space. Suddenly, she felt something. It wasn't quite a tug, but something was pulling at her. She looked towards the wall on her right.

_That's where Luffy is!_ Her mind told her.

She felt her legs tense and she struggled to her feet. Her movements were jerky and uncoordinated. In fact, she had no control over herself at the moment. Her legs moved and their own and she ran straight into the wall, hitting it head on and falling to the floor with a crash.

Crying out in pain, she raised her head and her fingers began searching the wooden panels.

"What are you doing?" Mr. 1 exclaimed in alarm as he came and stood over her.

Hawke ignored him and continued to claw at the wall. Her head and back were aching, her thoughts were scattered and she was gripped by another wave of nausea.

Her nails dug into the wood as she wretched emptily at the floor.

"Luffy's here," she muttered frantically, once she'd regained her breath, fighting down the bile in her throat, "He's here, he's this way."

"Sheesh," grunted the agent as he dragged her away and tried to put her back on her bed.

"No!" screamed Hawke, reaching up and trying to pull at Mr. 1's large hands, "Let me go to him!"

She wriggled free and ran at the wall again.

_You have to go this way!_ Her mind ordered her and her body forced her.

Mr. 1 caught her just before she hit it for the second time.

"What are you doing?!" he grunted again, "Fire Fist is dead! And if you move to much your wounds will reopen."

Hawke whirled around and snatched two knives out of her jacket pockets. She felt a sudden, massive, wave of anger flow through her chest and ripple along her arms and legs.

_He's trying to keep me away from Luffy,_ she thought, her brain foggy and her vision starting to spin again.

"You won't stop me!" she snarled and sprung at the agent.

He saw her attack coming and raised his forearms. Hawke saw them turn into blades, but she slashed at him anyways. Her knives cut through his blades and into his skin as they made contact.

Mr. 1 stumbled back.

Hawke used this time to turn and run out the door.

She stopped and looked around, finding herself on a small deck. The sky was covered in clouds and the wind blew sharply through her hair, making her tears bite into her cheeks.

_So I am on a ship,_ she thought as she stumbled forward.

Hawke faced the direction she was being drawn towards and jumped up onto the railing.

She bent double as a wave of pain and nausea ran through her, but she steadied herself.

_Luffy was there!_ She could feel her body being pulled to him.

She made to take out her wings and tensed, ready to jump.

But nothing happened.

"What?!" she exclaimed as she wobbled on the rail.

Her wings had stayed in tattoo form; they hadn't come to life!

Mr. 1 had followed her out and grabbed her arm.

"The Boss won't let you fly away," he muttered, dragging her back into the room.

Hawke looked down and saw a brown ring around her chest. She could feel the pressure as it squeezed her. It was just like the shackle they'd put on her in Impel Down! She felt rage boiling up inside her again.

"What is this?!," she seethed, tearing at the band, "Let go! Let me fly to Luffy!"

Her fingers burned as they fell through the strange band but she couldn't manage to break it.

She twisted her body out of Mr. 1's grasp and made for the door again.

But once again, she felt herself being pulled back.

"Let me go!" she screeched and pounced on Mr. 1.

Hawke was lightning on her feet, attacking him from all sides. Her sea prism knives cut through his blade-like skin. She could see the cuts beginning to bleed. She felt angry at everything and almost gleeful that she could take it out on him. The agent tried to lash out at her, but she was too quick for him. A sticky substance began running down her back and legs, but she didn't care.

Hawke's vision was foggy, her thoughts were still only focused on finding Luffy, protecting Luffy.

_And he's getting in my way,_ her crazed mind told her as a fresh wave of rage boiled over her heart, _he's lying and he's getting in my way!_

Hawke leapt into the air and prepared to drive her blade into Mr. 1's neck. She felt her hands tighten their grip on her knife.

"Hawke," a deep voice rang out.

The call pierced through her clouded mind and startled her. She flinched and the movement made her go wide of her target, her knife slicing through empty air.

She landed and stood still, her body extremely tense.

Mr. 1 staggered away from her and fell back into his chair; his arms and torso were covered in seeping cuts.

"Hawke," said the voice again.

She whirled around in the direction of the sound, her breath coming out in heavy pants.

There was a bed next to the one Hawke had been occupying that she hadn't noticed before. There, with his body covered by a blanket and his arm and hook resting on top of the covers, lay Sir Crocodile. His hair was wet and plastered across his forehead, he looked feverish.

Hawke glared at him, feeling her legs becoming weaker. She took a few staggering steps forwards. Her breath caught in her throat and she had to force her words through.

"You!?" she exclaimed, her voice shaking, "What am I doing here?! Let me go to my brother!"

She sank to her knees, tears streaming down her face even though she didn't remember when she had started crying.

"Let me go to the only brother I have left…" she gasped, "Oh, Ace!"

She swayed from side to side, letting out pitiful wails and groans as her heart and her mind struggled to understand what had happened.

"No, no no," she began tearing at her hair and chest again, "It's all wrong! It's a lie! He's not dead! He's not…"

Hawke screamed and slammed both her fists down onto the wooden planks, bringing her head down with them.

She sat there, on her knees, for a long while. The pain radiating all over her, now fully aware, body providing a slight distraction from the thoughts washing around in her mind like huge, crashing waves.

"What are you doing, Angel?" Crocodile's voice spoke to her through the fog that seemed to cover her eyes, "You're bleeding, and you puked all over the floor."

Hawke stiffened and jerked her face up.

"Don't call me that!" she shouted angrily at him, a wave of regret and shame rising in her chest, "Don't you dare call me that! An angel wouldn't have failed where I did! An angel would have saved Ace! I'm not an angel!"

Her screams had been so forceful that she was once again bent double. Hawke rested her head on the floor again and felt her head pulsing against the wood. Her mind pulled away from the dangerous thoughts about Ace and turned once again to the relative safety of her other brother.

"Clean up your mess, Hawke," Crocodile's voice brought her slightly back to reality.

The girl stared at him, and rubbed her eyes, trying to clear her vision. Then looked towards the wall again. Her thoughts weren't forming in comprehensible ways. She lifted herself and took a few stumbling steps forwards.

"Luffy," she mumbled, still wiping her eyes.

"Strawhat isn't there," Crocodile said in a strained voice, "We're at sea, far away from any land. Now clean yourself up before you make a mess of our entire ship."

"No," said Hawke feverishly, "Luffy's this way. I can feel him."

She pressed her hands against the wall and stood there. It was as if energy was flowing through her, telling her she needed to go this way.

_We're at sea…,_ she thought slowly, _at sea…and he won't let me fly…_

A thought began forming in her shocked and strained mind.

She heard Mr. 1 and Crocodile talking behind her, but she ignored them.

_We're on a boat…,_ she thought with difficulty, _we can sail…_

"Do you know healing?" Mr. 1's voice suddenly spoke from behind her.

Hawke spun around.

Both men were watching her warily.

Hawke blinked to try and clear her mind a little; trying to understand the direct question.

"Yes," she mumbled, "A bit."

"Then how about we make a deal," said Crocodile from his bed.

Hawke stiffened.

"What kind of deal?" she asked.

"If you heal my wounds," he said, "Then we will sail where you want to go… Mister 1 here isn't that well versed in the art of medicine," he added the last part as an after thought.

Hawke's mind became a bit sharper and her vision cleared a little as she heard these words. She quickly scrambled to take in her situation and weigh her options.

She was trapped on a small ship with two former enemies, recently turned somewhat allies, and had no idea how she had gotten here or where they were. She couldn't fly as long as Crocodile kept this shackle on her, keeping her wings from emerging. Her back was throbbing painfully and she felt cold shivers running across her chest and stomach. Sailing was her best bet to reach Luffy. And if she was the only healer here, they would have to keep her alive.

"Fine," she nodded, swaying on her feet.

_We have to start now_, she thought, _we can't lose any more time!_

Her mind was so focused on getting to Luffy that, for the moment, no other thoughts entered her head.

She pointed at Mr. 1.

"Get your first aid box and let me fix up those cuts I made," she mumbled, "Then you can steer the ship."

Mr. 1 grunted and exited the room.

Crocodile attempted to sit up, but it seemed he couldn't support himself and he slumped back onto the bed.

"You gave him quite the pounding," he grunted, wiping sweat out of his eyes, "But fix yourself up first, or you won't be able to do anything. And clean up that bile."

Hawke didn't answer, not really having listened to him. She staggered over to the ex-Warlord to examine his injuries.

_I need to heal him as quickly as possible,_ she thought_, although it would be safest for me if he were incapacitated, maybe this shackle would go away if he became weak enough…_

She shook her head.

_No, enough of those thoughts,_ she snapped to herself, _I need to ease his suffering, even if he is Crocodile._

_Suffering… Luffy must be suffering so much right now…And Ace._

Her hands began to shake. She clenched them into fists and closed her eyes, trying to hold back all the emotions she was feeling.

But when she closed her eyes, all she saw was Ace's death happening right in front of her. His bloodied back gaping at her. Luffy's blood covered hands reaching for his falling brother.

Hawke gave a cry and leapt backwards, falling onto the ground, pain shooting down her spine.

She was back in the little room, Crocodile lay before her, and there was no one else in sight.

Hawke took a few deep breaths, convincing herself that she was far away from the War, and sat up.

"You're still in shock," Crocodile's hard voice drew her attention back to the present, "You've just been dealt a terrible loss, it won't be easy."

Hawke went back to his bedside and looked down at the man in front of her.

He was quite feverish. She could see the beads of sweat dripping down his brow and his hair was very damp and bedraggled. His eyes, which usually held a hard, emotionless gaze, were glazed over and wandering around the room.

_He's in quite a state,_ she thought, _he needs your full attention now, remember what Chopper taught you. This will keep you distracted._

"Raise your hook," she said shakily, pulling back the covers to reveal the extent of the sand man's wounds.

Crocodile had a very deep, wide gash across his lower abdomen, and he had a piece of wood stuck right through his right shin.

"Oh my," she gasped, "How are you still conscious?"

He gave her a smirk, though it came out as more of a grimace.

Just then, Mr. 1 returned through the door and rested a large green box on Hawke's bed.

"Here's all our medical supplies," he said, tapping it with his hand.

As he did so, a few drops of blood fell from his arm onto the quilt.

Hawke clicked her tongue.

"Sit over there," she snapped, pointing to the chair, "You're bleeding all over."

Mr. 1 gave her a dark look.

"So are you," he snapped.

Hawke blinked and looked down at herself. There was blood dripping down the back of her legs and she had left a large smear on the floor where she'd fallen.

"Oh my!" she gasped.

After glancing at Crocodile, Mr. 1 sat and waited silently as Hawke inspected the first aid box.

Once again, Hawke felt like her body was moving on its own. She watched almost in awe as her fingers found the latch on the box and opened it. She let the lid fall back and stared at the contents.

"This is very well stocked," she muttered as she sifted through the supplies, still trying to stop her hands from shaking.

She took out a bottle of anti-septic ointment and a box of tenser band-aids with some cotton pads, as well as a large roll of bandages, a syringe and a small green bottle.

She looked at the bottle and bit her lip.

_There isn't much in here_, she thought worriedly, glancing at Crocodile, then back to the bottle.

_And I might not even need it_, she thought hazily, _I can't think or feel anything right now…_

She felt like she was on an island, separated from the world. She was safe inside her body, a blankness had settled around her mind and she just sat and watched the events of her immediate present happen before her.

_Though I guess I should do something about my wounds_, she thought as a low ache from her back threatened to invade her safe space.

"Could you help me?" she turned and asked Mr. 1 feebly, "I'll tell you what to do."

The knife man nodded. Hawke went to stand in front of him.

"Help me take my jacket off," she started raising her arms.

Her jacket slid off her shoulders and was put on the ground.

"Now take off the bandages," she instructed, "And as soon as they're off, clean the wound and put this along the cut." She held the ointment over her shoulder.

Mr. 1 took it and lifted her shirt, exposing her back. Hawke crossed her arms in front of her chest, stopping her shirt from rising too far.

The bandages were loosened and Mr. 1 let them fall to the floor around her feet.

Hawke's body winced as he began washing her wound with the disinfectant. And again when he spread the salve over her skin. But Hawke only felt an uncomfortable stinging, though it was getting sharper with each passing moment.

"Are there any stitches?" she asked hesitantly.

Mr. 1 paused.

"No," he replied.

Hawke shivered.

"How wide is the wound?" she asked.

Daz held his hand out where she could see it, holding his thumb a fingers apart with a distance of about an inch between them.

_Sheesh_, Hawke thought, _that Vice Admiral's blade must have been thick._

"Okay," she took a deep breath, "You're going to have to stitch me up then."

She went over to the first aid kit and took out the needle and thread.

"You can sew, I presume," she said.

Mr. 1 nodded.

"Okay," she handed him the supplies, "I'll lie on the bed."

She did as she said and M. 1 brought his chair over.

Hawke removed the pillow case and rolled it into a thick rod, then bit down hard on it.

_I know I'll feel this_, she thought as she felt herself becoming aware and conscious of her movements, even controlling them at some instances.

"Don't you want any anesthesia?" Mr. 1 asked.

Hawke clenched the blanket and spat the pillow case out of her mouth.

"See that bottle?" she pointed to the first aid kit. She had left the small green bottle leaning against the lid, "That's all the anesthetic you have. And Crocodile will need at least twice that much if he wants to be completely numb."

Crocodile turned and focused his gaze on her, but he remained silent.

"Whatever," Mr. 1 grunted.

Hawke returned the pillowcase to her mouth and gave him a thumbs up.

The pain that followed was definitely felt, in fact, it was blinding. Hawke almost suffocated herself with the pillow, but she welcomed it. She wasn't feeling the pain in her heart and she wasn't haunted by terrifying flashbacks. Her mind had no room for thinking about the past, present or future when it couldn't even focus on her surroundings. And through it all, she didn't make a sound, though the pillow was soaked through with tears by the end.

When it was finally over. Hawke spit out the pillow case and lay there panting heavily and retching emptily over the side of the bed.

Mr. 1 left to wash his hands and Hawke took this time to slowly sit up.

Her arms shook as she lifted herself and let her legs fall to the ground.

"That was unnecessary," Crocodile said sullenly.

Hawke looked up, wiping the sweat off her brow and chin.

"I'm much more suited to go without anesthesia," he continued.

Hawke noticed his eyes were a little clearer now, and his hard gaze chilled her. He looked angry.

She shook her head.

"I needed a distraction," she panted, "I couldn't…"

She wasn't able to finish her sentence. The memories were on the brink of returning. If she admitted any more, they would break free. She wasn't protected by her island of blankness any more, the world harassed her senses and she had to fight to keep it at bay.

Crocodile was still regarding her with a steady gaze.

Mr. 1 returned and moved the chair away from the bed. Hawke slowly stood and tested her stitches.

"They feel strong," she muttered, turning her back to the agent, "Now wrap me up again," she said, pointing to the roll of fresh bandages she'd taken out, "And make sure they're tight."

Mr. 1 did as she asked and soon Hawke felt much better, the pain was still there, but she felt supported and wasn't bleeding.

She then began treating the wounds that she had inflicted on Mr. 1.

"Sorry about these," she mumbled as she soaked up the blood with some cotton, "I don't know what came over me…"

Mr. 1 grunted and scooted the chair out into the room to give Hawke some space to move behind him.

She worked quickly but her progress was relatively slow. The cuts she had inflicted weren't very deep and they would heal by tomorrow, but there was also the injuries he had sustained during the battle from Mihawk and his other opponents.

When she had finally finished treating Mr. 1, she turned and pointed to the door.

"You're healthy enough," she said, "Now start sailing us towards Luffy."

The man eyed her before turning to Crocodile.

The Boss gave him a small nod.

Mr. 1 grunted and stalked out onto the deck.

Hawke followed and stood at the rail.

She could still feel a pulling sensation and took a moment to orient herself.

"That way," she pointed towards the horizon.

Mr. 1 had made it to the helm of the small craft and began steering the boat towards Hawke's pointing finger. She kept her arm raised until the bow of the boat lined up perfectly, turning her body as the boat turned.

"Just keep sailing straight that way," she called.

"Whatever, Shrimp," Mr. 1 muttered down to her.

"Shrimp?" Hawke raised her eyebrow at him, "That reminds me; I never asked. What's your real name?"

Mr. 1 stared down at her before rolling his eyes.

"Daz Bones," he replied, "I go by Daz."

Hawke nodded.

"Alright Daz," she said, "Don't leave that heading," then she turned and re-entered the cabin, ignoring the snappy retort thrown at her back.

Now that they were moving towards Luffy, Hawke felt a little more at ease. Though there was still an ocean of emotions swirling around in her chest. She closed the door and took a deep breath.

_I'm on my way, Luffy_, she thought, _I hope you're okay…I don't know how I can tell where you are, but I'm sure that's what this feeling is._

"Taking a fancy to ordering my subordinate about?" Crocodile's taunt snapped her back to reality.

Hawke threw a glare in his direction and collected the supplies she would need from the green box.

"First things first," she said and drew the cover off Crocodile, "I'll need to get your shirt off."

The wound on his torso was deep and, though it had stopped bleeding, the blood was pooling in the fabric covering the cut and would cause an infection if left like that.

Crocodile began trying to raise himself, but Hawke put her hand on his chest.

"Don't move," she muttered, "You'll start the bleeding again. I'll cut it off."

Crocodile laid back down with a gloomy look on his face.

Hawke rolled her eyes and picked up some scissors. She quickly cut away the fabric and exposed the torn skin underneath.

"What happened?" she asked quietly, pausing, "At Marineford, I mean?"

As she spoke those words, visions of the battle flashed in front of her eyes and she clenched at the blanket, her shoulders shaking.

Crocodile watched and waited until she had relaxed a bit before replying.

"Strawhat escaped with the Heart pirates," he grunted, "That happened after you got clobbered over the head. Then the Red Haired pirates showed up and ended the war."

Hawke glanced up at him out of the corner of her eye.

_Shanks showed up?_ She thought, _well… at least Luffy got away._

"And why am I here?" she asked pressingly, resuming her work, "Why did you rescue me?"

There was a pause.

"I thought it would be a shame if you got captured by the marines again so soon after getting out of prison," Crocodile finally muttered, "It was on a whim, really."

Hawke stared down at her hands. She wasn't sure if he was telling her the entire truth, but she had to admit that she would've been captured if Crocodile hadn't taken her along.

She didn't reply and began busying herself with treating his wounds. Soaking up the pooled blood with a towel, she spread an anti-infection balm over the wound, and then retrieved the little green bottle.

"Here," she transferred the anesthetic into a syringe, "I'm going to put you under. There isn't enough here, but it should at least make your body numb."

Crocodile grunted in reply.

Hawke injected the contents of the needle into his arm and then sat back, waiting for it to take effect. She kept her eyes wandering around the room, analyzing every detail she could see. Keeping her brain busy was proving to be a challenge. Standing up, she returned to Crocodile's bedside and checked his fever. She saw his eyes were glazed over and he barely responded to her touch, his brow only wrinkling slightly.

_Seems like this is as under as he's going to get_, she thought.

Hawke then proceeded to stitch up the skin. She watched the man's face as she worked, taking his slight movements as she finished to mean that the anesthetic was already wearing off.

_They need to replenish that,_ she thought as she put away the scissors and thread. She placed a bandage over the area and frowned, realizing that she _did_ need Crocodile to sit up so she could get the bandage around his waist.

_But he's still too out of it now_, she saw a drowsy smile spread across the man's face as he watched her.

Hawke shivered.

"That's creepy," she muttered.

Thinking for a moment, Hawke went and stuck her head out of the door.

"Hey, Daz!" she called, "I need you're help."

There was a pause, then she heard footsteps coming down from the helm.

She opened the door wider as Daz entered.

"What do you want, Shrimp?" he asked, a hint of a taunt in his voice.

"Can you lift Crocodile up so I can get that bandage around him?" she asked, opting to ignore his teasing.

Daz shot her a look, but he nodded and went over and lifted Crocodile's upper body just enough for her to reach under.

The Boss maintained his smile throughout the procedure, his arms spreading slightly and his one hand grabbed onto Daz's arm to steady himself.

"Can't you steer this ship properly!?" the hooked man slurred his words as he glared blearily at Daz.

The first mate made no reply.

Hawke kept an eye on the wound, but it didn't look like it was reopening. She quickly pulled the bandage tight and then helped to lower Crocodile back down.

"That should be okay for now," she said.

Then she stiffened.

"We're going off course," she snapped and turned to Daz, her eyes flashing, "Hurry and correct it!"

"You don't give me orders, Shrimp!" he glared down at her.

Daz looked at Crocodile, but the latter had his eyes closed.

Letting out a huff and giving Hawke another glare, he made his way back out of the cabin.

Hawke stood still until she felt the pull at the bow of the boat once again. Then she turned her attention to the piece of wood.

"I'll need to take this out before it starts to poison your blood," she muttered, busying herself with his leg, "How long has it been in there?"

She noted that Crocodile was breathing harder than before.

"A day and a half," he panted.

Hawke looked up and saw that Crocodile's appearance had gotten worse in the few moments since she had last looked at him.

_Uh oh_, she thought, _he's conscious enough to answer coherently._

"How are you feeling?" she asked worriedly, running to fetch a wet cloth, "It seems that anesthetic wasn't enough… and there's no more for this next part."

"Oh, fantastic," retorted her patient sarcastically.

"I'm sorry," she said quietly as she dabbed the cloth on his forehead.

She wiped his hair out of the way and pressed the back of her hand to it.

"Well you have a fever," she stated, "But it isn't too severe yet. Let's try and keep it that way."

She glanced down at Crocodile's face. His eyes were still closed and his breathing was still ragged. She noted his cheeks were flushing and more beads of sweat were appearing on his brow. She wiped them away with her cloth.

Inspite of the history between them, she felt a bit worried for the man.

"You're handling this pretty well," she said, leaving the cloth on his forehead and returning her attention to his wound, "As expected from one of the seven warlords, I guess."

"Ex-warlord," was the muttered response.

Hawke felt her lips twitch, recalling the adventure in the desert kingdom that seemed to have been so long ago.

"Yeah," she sighed, remembering Vivi and Carue and feeling her traumatic memories subside for the moment.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Crocodile opened his eyes at the sound of her sigh.

He looked at the girl sitting at the end of his bed. She was poking around the base of the piece of wood sticking through his leg.

He could feel the heat in his face and was grateful for the cool cloth she had put on his head.

_This isn't quite according to my plan_, he thought, _then again, it was only pure luck that Akainu managed to land that last attack, the bastard._

He sighed, trying to ignore the pain that was pulsating all over his body.

This caught Hawke's attention and she glanced up at him.

Seeing his eyes open, the corners of her mouth turned upwards, but it wasn't quite a smile.

"Is that cloth helping?" she asked.

Crocodile decided that it would be best to humour her for now.

"Quite a lot," his voice came out strained, "Thank you."

She seemed startled at his words of thanks, but she nodded.

"You better close your eyes now," she said, "This needs to be done before the effect completely wears off."

He took a moment to process her words and gave her a quizzical glance. Then he saw her hand gripping the piece of wood.

"Wai-!" he started to object.

But before he could prepare himself, she yanked on the wood with all her might.

The anesthesia had all but worn off because Crocodile felt the piece move through his leg as it was removed. The feeling made him shudder and his mind reeled. If he hadn't been feverish, he would have been able to handle such a shock. But as it was, he promptly fell unconscious.

_Damn brat,_ were his last thoughts.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Hawke finished wrapping Crocodile's leg and pulled the cover back up over him after giving his other wound another check.

"Well, I guess you'll be asleep for a while now," she muttered, switching the cloth on his head for a new one.

Hawke packed away most of the supplies, keeping a few rolls of bandages and some anti-septic ointment out for changing dressings.

She closed the lid with a snap, and as she did so, her stomach let out a growl.

"I'm starving," she grumbled.

_If Crocodile was telling the truth, then it's been at least two days since I've eaten,_ she thought_, two days since..._

A jolt went through her body and she stumbled towards the door. Leaning heavily against the wood, Hawke felt sweat dripping down her forehead and she couldn't catch her breath. Dark shadows filled her vision and the iron scent of blood filled her nostrils.

"No!" Hawke gasped and groped for the door handle, pushing it open and stumbling out onto the deck.

She drew air into her lungs in great, heaving, gasps.

"Ace!" she cried, "Ace where are you! Luffy! We saved you, right?!"

_Just face the truth!_ A voice in her head snapped at her, _Ace is dead! And you need to get to Luffy! If this is how you're acting, then how do you think he's taking this!?_

Hawke lunged for the rail and let out a long, drawn out, piercing scream.

"AAAAAAAACCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!Aaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh!"

Her shoulders shook as she stood still, panting and whimpering. She felt tears rolling down her cheeks, from psychological or emotional pain, she didn't know.

_There_, the voice whispered, _don't you feel better now?_

"Hey," Daz's low voice suddenly spoke from behind her, "You alright?"

Hawke stiffened and turned, her mind cleared as she stared at the first mate. She slowly returned to reality and wiped her eyes.

"Um," she felt her shoulders sagging forward, "Yeah… yeah I'm fine."

Daz gave her a cold stare.

"And how's the Boss?" he muttered.

Hawke ran her hand through her hair.

"He's sleeping now," she sighed, "I've treated his wounds. He just needs rest and his bandages changed regularly."

Daz grunted and gave her a nod.

Hawke lifted an eyebrow as she felt the pulling sensation in her chest shift.

"We're going off course," she muttered, "Why don't you tie a rope on the wheel or something?"

Daz glared down at her and turned, leaving her at the rail.

Hawke lowered her face and rubbed her forehead. Her stomach let out another loud growl.

She still couldn't quite believe the situation she now found herself in. But she was still reeling from witnessing Ace's death and her overwhelming desire to be with Luffy. It was all she could do to just go along for the ride until she could take the time to register everything.

She turned and noticed a door a little to the right of the bedroom. She went over and pushed it open, revealing a room with a small table, a sink and a two burner stove.

"Here we are," she muttered and proceeded to rummage through the cupboards.

Her body was moving on its own again, performing her actions from memory. Her mind was somewhere else, far away, somewhere she didn't know.

Cooking did, however, provide a temporary distraction and, after raiding the cupboards, she threw herself into making a huge pot of chili.

Soon there was a delicious smell filling the small kitchen and flowing out to the deck.

Hawke was in the middle of adding the last peppers to the pot when the door sprung open.

"What are you doing, Shrimp?" she heard Daz's voice snap.

The aggressiveness in his voice rubbed her the wrong way, yanking at her already frayed mind.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" she snapped right back.

Then she sighed. She didn't know how long she was going to be sailing with these men, so she should at least be on non-aggressive terms with them.

"Look" she said, turning to face him, "I'm sorry I've been bossy and that I cut you up. But I'm exhausted, wounded, on the verge of a break down and hungry and all I want to do is get to my brother, so can't we get along for now?"

Daz was still standing in the doorway, his arms were crossed over his bandaged chest and he was frowning at her.

_I'm fighting a lost cause_, she thought, dropping her spoon to her side.

But to her surprise, the man lowered his arms and shrugged.

"I suppose it would be better if we cooperated," he said and sat down at the table.

Hawke stared. She felt like she would have smiled in this situation, but couldn't bring her lips upwards.

"Great," she said, turning back to the stove, "You came just in time."

She quickly dished out two bowls of chili and sat down across from Daz.

He looked into his bowl, had a taste, then quickly devoured the entire thing and began helping himself to seconds.

Hawke let out a small, forced, awkward, laugh.

"If you were that hungry you should have said something," she said, polishing off her own bowl and waving it out to him.

Daz took it and filled it before returning to his place at the table.

"You know," he muttered, "For just being a scout, you're pretty handy."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Hawke muttered.

Daz gave her a stare, but this one didn't seem as hostile as his previous glares.

"I told the Boss way back then that we should have kept you," he said between bites.

Hawke lowered her spoon.

"Back then?" she asked hesitantly.

Daz looked at her warily, but continued to explain.

"Back when we were Baroque Works and were about to realize the Boss's Operation Utopia."

Hawke tried to conceal her shudder, but Daz caught it.

He leaned back in his chair.

"I had a lot of time to think while in Impel Down," he said, "And at one point or another, I recalled a particular captive and what she was forced to do for our entertainment."

Hawke stared at him from across the table.

"And I regret having participated in that," he muttered and gave her a stare, his hand going back to his spoon.

Hawke was silent for a few drawn out moments, her mind going back to the time she'd spent in Crocodile's casino.

"Apology accepted," she stated finally and started on her chili again.

She still had unpleasant memories about being Crocodile's captive, but she had long since moved on. And right now she had other things to worry about.

Daz lowered his eyes and seemed lost in thought.

Hawke finished her meal and stood. She froze and seemed to zone out for a second.

"We're going off course again," she snapped, suddenly coming back to life.

Daz rolled his eyes and stood, handing her his bowl.

"Yeah, Shrimp," he said as he opened the door and went out.

Hawke felt her lips twitch and turned to put the dishes in the sink.

"I should make a soup for Crocodile," she muttered, "He won't be able to stomach something as rich as chili just yet."

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Hawke peeked around the door and into the room.

Crocodile was lying quietly in his bed, still asleep.

She entered softly and placed a thermos of soup on the table next to his bed.

After freeing her hands, she checked his fever and wounds again.

The fever had gone down a little bit and there was no stain showing through the bandages.

_Good_, she thought, _his blood has decided to stay in his body._

_Blood… all of the blood, spilling out of the hole in Ace's back, covering Luffy's hands as he held his brother._

Hawke felt her knees give out as she collapsed onto the floor. Her throat seemed to constrict and she struggled to draw her breath.

Her hands shook as she fell sideways and lay on the floor gasping.

"Ace…" her voice cracked as she saw her brothers bloody figures rise in front of her, "Luffy… no…"

Tears were flowing freely down her face and the smell of vomit washed over her. She covered her mouth with her hand, trying to stifle the sobs as they wracked her body. Her other hand clutching at her chest. There was an aching pain in her heart, it felt like there was a spike slowly being pushed through her body. The room whirled around her and she closed her eyes, trying to hide from the terror and the despair that loomed up inside of her.

"Ace is gone!" she whimpered as she curled into a ball, "He's gone… I never got to know him…"

She let out a low groan as she rolled over, trying to get the ache out of her chest.

She could see Ace's body as it fell towards the ground… as it fell out of Luffy's arms… Luffy.

Luffy knew Ace… Luffy loved Ace… his pain would be ten times greater than hers was…

This realization drove the spike straight through her heart and she cried out. Luffy was suffering immensely right now! The thought finally rang home in her brain.

She felt a sudden weight press onto her shoulder and was snapped out of her misery, opening her eyes.

Hawke was back in the little room again, the sound of waves and the creaking of wood was all she heard. Raising her head, she looked up and saw Crocodile's hand resting on her shoulder.

Stiffening, she quickly rolled out of his reach and jumped up. Losing her balance as the ship rocked, she fell back onto the other bed.

She stared across at the man laying in front of her, gasping and trying to catch her breath and slow her hammering heart.

But Crocodile didn't seem to be awake. His eyes were closed and his breathing was slow and regular. His hand stayed down where it had fallen.

Hawke rested her head in her hands and leaned forward, taking slow, deep breaths.

"What you need to do is get to Luffy," she told herself shakily, "He's hurting even more than you are. Shame on you!"

She clenched her fists and stood.

"Get to Luffy!" she ordered herself, her voice becoming more leveled, "Then you can take time for yourself!"

Hawke quickly busied herself with cleaning up the mess she'd made.

She returned Crocodile's arm onto the mattress and switched the cloth on his forehead for a new, cooler one before stripping the blanket off the other bed and piling it on the floor.

"I'd better get that stain out before it becomes permanent," she muttered, her cleaning habit coming through, "And I've got to clean that floor… right, I threw up all over there… how could I forget that I did that?"

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

**Updates will continue to be slow for a while (sorry :( ) I'm still trying to figure out parts of my plot**


	53. Chapter 53: A Strange Conversation

**Chapter 53**

**A Strange Conversation**

Hawke scrubbed at the stains she'd left on the wooden planks.

Crocodile was sleeping soundly and Daz was out at the helm.

The girl let the sound of the brush scrubbing away at the floor take up all of her attention.

Back and forth, back and forth, back and forth.

The rough sound was soothing, and loud enough to block out her thoughts.

"Get to Luffy, get to Luffy," she chanted as she swayed back and forth in her motions of cleaning, "Get to Luffy, get to Luffy."

Hawke finished her work on the floor and changed the water in her bucket, then she brought the chair over to Crocodile's bedside. She was about to start on the blanket when she noticed the cloth had fallen to the floor.

"You must have been fidgeting," she muttered, picking it up.

As she was wiping Crocodile's forehead, he began to speak.

"No, don't," he muttered.

Hawke lifted her hand, startled into reacting.

"Does this bother you?" she asked.

She glanced down at Crocodile's face, but his eyes were closed.

His forehead wrinkled and she saw his fist clench.

"Are you okay?" she asked, beginning to get worried.

But he didn't answer her.

His head suddenly jerked to the side, facing her.

"Wait!" he growled, his expression dark and menacing, even with his eyes closed.

Hawke jumped and took a step back from the bed.

_He must be dreaming…,_ she realized, somewhat astonished, _I guess he can have them too, just like everybody else._

She had forgotten that this man, who had been their enemy, was a person and not just a power hungry, emotionless robot.

This realization made Hawke suddenly see Crocodile in a new light. She saw that he was a man who had struggled through a hard life, who had been constantly denied his dreams but had still moved forward.

_And we were the ones who denied him a dream_, she thought, though she didn't regret doing so one bit.

Hawke sat down and watched Crocodile as his head rolled back and forth across his pillow. Her mind, in an effort to keep her in this calmed state, focused all its attention on this new event.

"That must be some dream," she said quietly, "I wonder what someone like you dreams about."

She thought for a moment and came to another realization. She didn't know anything about the men she was now sailing with, except for the little she could remember from Alabasta.

She looked up and surveyed the room.

Her eyes fell on Crocodile's large cloak. It was draped over the bedpost at the end of his bed.

Eyeing the man, she carefully got up and tiptoed over to it.

Kneeling down, she began carefully rummaging through the large pockets.

_I have to be careful,_ she thought, _who knows what he has in here_.

She laid out the contents of the cloak on the floor in front of her knees.

The first item was a small, delicate-looking knife.

_Must be a last resort or self defense thing_, she thought, twirling it in her fingers, _it's pretty nice._

Next to it was a collection of four rings.

_He must have taken them off during the battle_, she thought, looking up at the ring free hand clenching the covers.

The next article was a decent-sized bag of coins.

_I wish my wallet was that big_, she pouted at the bag.

The ones that followed were typical left-forgotten-in-pockets stuff like buttons and pieces of string.

Hawke quickly scanned over them and came to the last item.

It was a piece of paper with some writing across the top of it.

Hawke picked it up and squinted, trying to read it in the lamp-light.

"Don't forget me, Crocoda, - Cielle"

Hawke blinked and stared as she saw a small heart drawn at the end of the woman's name.

"He has a lover?!" Hawke gasped out loud.

She covered her mouth and looked up to see if she had woken Crocodile.

He had stopped moving around and now seemed to be sleeping peacefully again.

Hawke stood and went up to the head of the bed, looking down at the man lying in front of her.

"I guess you're pretty handsome," she muttered, wiping the cloth across his forehead, "For an old, creepy guy," she added.

She lifted the paper and re-read the note.

"Crocoda?" she felt her lips twitch, "That's a cute nickname."

Just then the paper slipped from her grasp and fell to the floor.

"Damn," muttered Hawke, quickly bending to pick it up.

As she did so, she saw that the paper had flipped over. The other side wasn't blank as she had thought it had been.

"It's a picture!" she gasped.

She scurried back to the end of the bed, crouched down, and started to scrutinize the photograph.

It was of a young woman.

From her body and complexion, Hawke concluded that the woman was probably in her late twenties. She was wearing a soft blue dress and her wavy, white hair fell gracefully down her back. She seemed to be trying to hide herself from the camera. Her hands were half raised and her face was tilted slightly away from the viewer. She had a smile on her face, though, and she looked very happy.

"This must be Cielle," Hawke concluded, her mind gobbling up the new information, "She must be Crocodile's sweet heart. I wonder where she is now?" she glanced up to check on Crocodile.

He was still sleeping soundly, so she returned her gaze to the photograph.

Suddenly, a recent memory came back to her.

_Could this be what he had in that secret compartment in his hook?_ she wondered.

Hawke hesitated as she looked at the woman's face.

She blinked and shook her head.

"Wow, I must be pretty shallow," she muttered, "How could I look like her…?"

_Still,_ Hawke stared down at the photo.

She shook her head again.

"Don't be silly," she told herself, "You have the same eye colour, that's all."

She quickly stuffed the articles back into the pockets of Crocodile's cloak.

But as she moved to put the photo back, she found that she couldn't let it go.

"Come on," she muttered, trying to force herself to put it away.

But she found herself examining the picture again. This was an excellent distraction and her body wouldn't let her leave it just yet.

This time her gaze was drawn to the background.

The photo had been taken outside. She could see a blue sky and some white clouds. Cielle was standing in front of a building. Hawke could just make out the sign, which was almost cut out of the picture.

"The Howling Harpy?" she mumbled.

"What are you doing?" Crocodile's menacing voice suddenly rang out through the room.

Hawke froze and quickly looked up towards the head of the bed.

Crocodile had propped himself up and was staring at her with a very terrifying look in his eyes.

"Nothing," she squeaked and hurriedly stuffed the picture back into a pocket.

She stepped back and tried to look innocent.

"How are you feeling?" she asked quickly, failing to hide the quaver in her voice.

Crocodile was still glaring at her. He looked very scary.

"What were you doing?" he asked again threateningly, his hard eyes digging into hers.

_Well at least he sounds like he's feeling better_, thought Hawke.

"Umm…," she stalled for time as she picked up the bed cover from the floor, "I was just washing this stain out before it set."

Crocodile glanced down at the bucket of water beside the chair near his bed. He slowly reached down and wet his finger. His eyes flicked back to her.

"With cold water?" he asked sullenly.

Hawke opened her mouth, then closed it again. Her shoulders drooped in defeat.

Crocodile shot her another menacing look. Then he seemed to deliberate with himself.

"Bring it here," he sighed in a tired voice, holding out his hand.

Hawke stood frozen.

Crocodile frowned and flicked his wrist.

She immediately felt the band of sand tighten around her rib cage.

"Ouch, okay!" she gave in quickly, her body wanting to prevent any further pain.

Crocodile watched as she retrieved the photo and placed it tentatively into the palm of his hand.

Then he sat still, unmoving.

Hawke gave him a questioning look.

"Do you like this picture?" he asked her suddenly, his eyes boring into hers.

Hawke blinked in surprise. Crocodile's voice wasn't as aggressive as it had been moments before. His eyes were still hard as steel, but they weren't glaring anymore.

"Uh," she stuttered, "Well, yeah… I guess."

"You didn't seem to want to let it go," Crocodile muttered, his eyes back on the picture.

Hawke sat down on the chair.

_So he had been watching me for a while_, she sighed.

There was an awkward silence.

"She's very beautiful," Hawke said quietly, hoping that it wouldn't make him angrier.

Crocodile adjusted the photo in his hand, but he only let out a soft grunt.

This surprised Hawke, but she was glad he wasn't going to strangle her again.

"Here," he said gruffly, suddenly holding his hand out to her, "Take it."

Hawke quickly took the photo, as a reflex, but she was very confused.

"Why?" she asked, "Don't you want to keep it until you can get back to her?"

Crocodile looked away across the room.

"She's dead," he muttered darkly.

"Oh, I'm sorry," mumbled Hawke, there was another awkward pause, "What happened? Was that long ago?"

Crocodile turned to look at her, his eyes piercing and probing.

"Seventeen years," he said, ignoring the other half of her question.

Hawke blinked.

"Oh," she said.

She looked down at the picture in her hands and stroked her thumb down the woman's face.

"Her name was Cielle?" she asked,

This conversation was extremely strange. But Hawke's mind fixated on it and didn't want to let it go yet. Still, she was very surprised that Crocodile had let it go on for this long.

"Solace D. Cielle," he replied, watching Hawke as she looked at the picture.

"D?" she asked, "Like Luffy and Ace…"

She felt a jolt of emotion go through her body as her brothers rose once again in her mind. Her shoulders started to shake, but she gripped the photo tighter and bit her lip. She would not lose her composure in front of Crocodile again!

_Just get to Luffy!_ she began chanting in her head, _get to Luffy, get to Luffy._

She swallowed, wetting her suddenly dry throat, and turned the photo over and reread the note.

She felt her mouth twitch as she read the "Crocoda" part again.

"What?" Crocodile asked tersely.

"Ah…" Hawke jumped a little, "She just seems like a really nice person."

Crocodile grunted.

Hawke looked up and saw he was no longer watching her. It seemed like this strange conversation was over. Fortunately, her mind didn't have time to scramble for a new distraction, because just then, Crocodile shifted his sitting position and groaned, bringing his hand to his stomach.

"What's wrong?" Hawke jumped up, placing the picture on the nightstand.

Crocodile stared at her worried face for a moment, looking startled, and then, to Hawke's great surprise, he let out a chuckle.

"No need to get so worked up," he said, "I'm just hungry."

Hawke blushed and stamped her foot.

"Well don't groan like that if all you are is hungry!" she snapped, "I thought something was wrong."

Crocodile didn't respond, but he smirked and watched as she walked around the bed and took the thermos off the table.

"Here," she said, unscrewing the top, "It's soup."

Hawke watched Crocodile as he eased himself into a full sitting position and took the thermos from her. He seemed to be much more relaxed. She had never seen him like this, even when they had been alone in Alabasta. And certainly not in Impel Down.

Even_ she_ felt quite at ease at the moment. Her blanket of blankness had returned, not as intense as before, but she felt safe and numb again. But she had a nagging feeling that this wouldn't last.

Hawke shook her head and walked over to pick up the bucket.

She let her body leave the room to refill it with hot water. When she returned, Crocodile was sitting quietly in his bed and the empty thermos was back on the nightstand.

Hawke stayed silent as she sat down and began soaking the cover in the water. She took the soap and began lathering it.

"You don't have to stay here," Crocodile said gruffly as he watched her work.

"You're still recovering," said Hawke absentmindedly, more focused on the stain removal process, "I should stay nearby in case you start bleeding again or your fever picks up."

Her eyes flicked upwards and she caught a smirk flit over the sand man's lips.

She shot him a questioning glance as she scrubbed the stain vigorously.

"What's so funny?" she muttered.

Crocodile paused before answering her. Hawke could tell he was thinking about his words.

"I can take care of myself," he stated, "It's annoying when you do it, so stop."

Hawke frowned at him. She saw that the stain had been lifted off the blanket and rinsed the suds off in the bucket of water. Then she stood and draped the blanket over the end of the bed.

"I'm only doing this because we have a deal!" she snapped, "Don't worry, as soon as you're better I won't care about you at all!"

Crocodile smirked again and opened the drawer in his night table, taking out a cigar.

"No way!" snapped Hawke.

She quickly snatched the cigar out of his hand.

"You can't smoke with your injuries!" she exclaimed, "Are you crazy?!"

Crocodile glared at her, his face was dark.

"Give that back immediately!" he snarled, trying to grab her.

Hawke leapt back out of his reach. But he flicked his wrist again and she felt the ring of sand tighten around her chest.

Pain seared across her back as she was squeezed.

"Ow!" she cried out in fear, "That hurts!"

"Give it back, Angel," Crocodile sneered, "You don't want this to continue do you?"

His words echoed through Hawke's mind, bringing back the memories of the events that happened in the Rain Dinners Casino. She clenched her fists as she felt anger welling up inside her, fueled by her already roiling emotions and the tremendous urge to end the pain.

"Fine!" she yelled, throwing the cigar at him, "I don't care if you get even sicker! You're still just a cruel, bullying, pervert! I can't believe I almost thought -!"

She cut herself off and let out another cry of pain.

As the cigar fell onto Crocodile's bed, the grip of the sand shackle loosened.

As soon as she could breathe properly again, Hawke spun around and ran out of the room without a backwards glance.

Crocodile stared after her, completely ignoring the victory prize sitting on his sheets. He glanced over and caught sight of the picture laying on the nightstand.

He quickly shoved it into the nightstand drawer and slammed it shut. Then he turned his attention to the cigar. After a few moments of silence, he threw that into the drawer too. For some reason, he didn't feel like smoking anymore.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Hawke stormed out onto the deck and ran to the rail, gripping it until her knuckles turned white.

"That bastard!" she screamed at the waves, letting off some steam.

She stood clutching the rail and began catching her breath.

_How could I fall into his trap?_ She seethed, _He almost tricked me into caring about him!_

She looked up at the sky. It was dark and the stars and moon were shining brightly.

_If only I could fly away from here_, she thought desperately, her thoughts turning to Luffy once again.

She looked down at the shackle wrapped around her chest.

"Ugh, let me go!" she shouted and began tearing at the shackle.

But, as it was made of sand, it just kept reforming as soon as she tore it and she only succeeded in getting burns on her fingers.

She heard footsteps approaching her.

"What's wrong, Shrimp?" she heard Daz's voice.

She tensed her shoulders and shook her head.

"Nothing," she quietly, "I just got strangled for trying to heal your stupid boss!"

Daz looked down at her and shrugged.

"Well, I'm going to turn in," he said, "It's late, you probably should too."

Hawke stood and shook her head.

"I'll take over navigating," she said, "You get to bed."

Daz stared at her. She turned away to made her way towards the helm.

"Oh, I washed the blanket on your bed," she called over her shoulder, "It's still damp so don't use it or you'll catch a cold."

She heard a grunt.

As she positioned herself at the helm, she saw Daz enter the bedroom and close door behind him.

"There's no way I'm stopping this boat," she told herself, making sure that they were still on course, "This pulling sensation is getting stronger and stronger."

As Hawke steered the small ship, her mind wandered back to the picture of Cielle and Crocodile's reaction to her seeing it. It seemed she had found a sufficient distraction.

He had seemed like a completely different person while they were talking about the photograph. And he had treated it with… something akin to gentleness. _Still_, she thought,_ I don't know why he wants me to have it. The bastard!_

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

The next few days passed in a depressed silence for Hawke. She couldn't find the strength to acknowledge either of the men, even as she treated them. They did try to engage her in conversation a few times, but after receiving a constant cold shoulder, they both gave up and let her have her way.

Hawke would cook and keep an eye on Crocodile's condition during the day, then she would take her place at the helm at night. Her own wounds were slowly healing. She was getting Daz to help her change her bandages and apply salve to her back, and now she could move without much pain at all.

However, Hawke was immensely restless and was having a lot of trouble falling asleep. The truth was that when she did fall asleep, she would be assaulted with terrifying nightmares that re-enacted Ace's death and showed Luffy drowning in his grief, alone and screaming. She would wake up sharing those screams. She had been sleeping at the helm, but even so, her screams would wake Daz and he would run out onto the deck, thinking they were being attacked. He would go back to sleep when he realized it had been Hawke, and after the first few occurrences, he didn't even bother getting out of bed. Hawke tried to stay awake for as long as she could, not wanting the nightmares to return and also not wanting to keep disturbing the men. In her waking hours she kept the thought of getting to Luffy at the forefront of her mind, leaving no room for anything else.

During a particularly bright night, Hawke was once again standing at the helm. She had been awake for more than two days and her mind was showing the strain.

_I feel so heavy_, she thought foggily, _I can barely hold the wheel…_

Her weak grasp on the helm began to slip more and more often as the night went on. Hawke could feel a pressure building up in her chest, an undulating mass of unexpressed emotions that needed to be unleashed.

_But I can't do that yet_, she thought slowly, fixing her gaze ahead and feeling the pull on her heart, _I need to make sure Luffy's okay._

She kept the helm as steady as she could as the night grew older. It was in the early hours of the morning when she noticed something strange about the sea in front of them.

She squinted ahead.

_What is that?_ she wondered.

The sea, which had been covered in small waves, suddenly became very still, mirroring the stars almost perfectly.

_Oh no_, she let out a small gasp, looking up as the sails suddenly emptied, _it's the Calm belt._

Hawke knew that it was extremely dangerous for a sailing vessel to enter that sea, seeing as the last time she had entered it they were almost eaten by sea kings, but the pulling sensation was still telling her to go straight ahead…

She had to keep going and hope that the sea monsters were busy elsewhere.

Using a piece of rope to tie the helm in place, she frowned at the motionless water below her.

_I'm sure they have an oar somewhere_, she thought and began searching the ship.

Hawke went into the kitchen, riffling through the cupboards, then around the front of the ship. She finally found what she was looking for tucked under a bench.

_Gotcha_, she grunted as she pulled up the oar, _I'm coming Luffy._

Going back to the helm, she sat down to start paddling.

After a few hours, she began feeling the strain in her arms.

_Phew_, she panted, _this would be hard enough without being exhausted._

She paddled on as far as her arms would let her. She could feel all her restless energy being spent and her body begin to shut down.

_Maybe a little rest wouldn't hurt_, she sighed, bringing the oar back up on deck.

Hawke felt her arms relax as the strain on them was lifted.

_Just a few minutes_, she thought as she closed her eyes and fell into an exhaustion induced, dreamless sleep.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Sengoku watched silently as the reconstruction finally got underway.

The days of moving bodies and creating space for make-shift infirmaries were finally over. And the rebuilding of the marine fortress could finally begin.

"What a mess," the Fleet Admiral muttered, crossing his arms and surveying the destruction, "The damages are much higher than we anticipated."

He had expected some infrastructure damage of course, knowing Whitebeard was going to fight and knowing his devil fruit power. But this was almost irreparable. Almost.

Sengoku was brought out of his analysis of the situation by a marine saluting him.

"Yes?" he asked, noticing how tired his own voice sounded.

"Sir!" the marine saluted again, "I have some… bad news!"

Sengoku frowned and mentally prepared himself, this wasn't the first, and he was sure it wouldn't be the last, piece of bad news he would hear before this was all over.

"What is it?" he asked, keeping his voice calm.

The marine held out a clipboard with a piece of paper attached to it.

"The squads just finished the damage analysis of the lower levels," he stated, "And they found the lower vaults were severely damaged."

Sengoku's eyes widened.

"The vaults!?" he exclaimed, "But that's where-!"

He snatched the clipboard and quickly read over the words on the paper.

"Prisoner 00!" he felt beads of sweat forming on his brow, "That's not possible! Those walls are twenty meters thick!"

The marine nodded and gave the Fleet Admiral a nervous look.

"The highest priority prisoner is reported missing," he stated, "Along with the escapees from Impel Down, this is the worst breach of the navy security in history!"

Sengoku frowned deeply as he read over the report.

"Could this have been part of their plan all along?" he muttered, "And considering the Dark Angel managed to escape… this is very bad news."

His grip on the clip board tightened and turned his gaze to the marine.

"Let all the Vice-Amdirals know about this," he ordered, "We must quickly recapture the escapees, especially Prisoner 00 and the Dark Angel!"

"Yes, sir!" the marine saluted him and hurried off.

Sengoku turned and quickly went off to find Garp and Kong.

_This must've been planned_, he thought grimly, _we can't let them meet!_


	54. Chapter 54: His Reasons

**Chapter 54**

**His Reasons**

The next morning dawned calm and clear.

Crocodile opened his eyes and yawned.

He sat up and did a mental survey of his body.

His abdomen and leg were extremely sore, but he didn't feel feverish anymore and the pain was quite tolerable.

"That's more like it," he muttered, "It's been long enough."

Looking over at the neighbouring bed, he saw that Daz was still sleeping.

Just then, he noticed the silence.

There was no sound of waves or of birds.

"What's going on?" he grumbled, easing himself slowly into a sitting position.

He lowered his right foot down and put some weight on it. A streak of pain shot through his calf, making him clench his teeth.

_Damn_, he thought_, I still can't put any pressure on it_.

Just then Daz woke up with a stretch.

He glanced over at Crocodile.

"She said that you should stay in bed," he grunted, standing and yawning.

Crocodile frowned and threw a hard stare in Daz's direction.

The knife man pointed to his table.

"But she left that for you anyways," he added.

Following his pointing finger, Crocodile saw a thick wooden cane leaning against his nightstand.

He let a smirk grace his lips.

"How considerate of her," he muttered.

_Maybe she's finally gotten over her little temper tantrum_…

He reached over and picked it up. Putting it beside his weakened foot, he slowly began standing, keeping most of his weight on the cane.

"Perfect," he said as he straightened his shoulders, "Now let's see where the little brat has taken us."

Daz exited the room and Crocodile followed, albeit a little slower than usual.

"I hope she slept last night," muttered Daz, "She was close to collapsing yesterday."

Crocodile raised his eyebrows.

"Are you concerned for the brat?" he asked snarkily.

Daz's back stiffened.

"Her screams are so high pitched and annoying. I haven't had a good nights sleep in a week," he muttered over his shoulder.

Crocodile frowned.

He had been woken up many times in the past nights, greeted by Hawke's terrified screams. In fact, the first few times it had happened, he had thought he was still dreaming and his fever was making him hallucinate. Recently, he had noticed her hands getting more and more unsteady when she changed his bandages.

_I guess I expected as much_, he thought, _there was that scene she made when she woke up and her little "attack" after that._

Crocodile had indeed been woken by Hawke's whimpers and cries while she lay on the floor beside his bed many days ago. He had meant to slam his fist down, to punish her for annoying him with those pitiful sounds. But instead his hand had come to rest lightly on her shoulder. Unfortunately, the movement had caused multiple waves of pain to shoot through his torso and he couldn't bring himself to move his arm back up. He had settled for closing his eyes and waiting for the pain to pass. While he was doing this, he had heard Hawke scolding herself and then she had moved his arm up to the bed.

With his comfort returned, he thought it pointless to try and converse with the girl, so he let himself rest. The soft sounds of the brush moving across the planks that followed had lulled the sand man into a light sleep.

He had woken again to find her going through his pockets, the little thief. He had initially been furious, but it turned out he was too tired to care about the invasion of his privacy. He found himself feeling quite calm about the whole situation, despite the fact that he hadn't intended for Hawke to see that photograph so soon. Calm, at least up until the brat had attempted to deny him his cigar.

Crocodile put his hand on the door frame and frowned, realizing that he still hadn't had his smoke.

Daz shot a glance back at him, pausing.

_He probably thinks I'm still too weak to be moving around, the bastard_, Crocodile thought.

"Hurry up!" he snapped, "You're in my way!"

The two men made their way out onto the deck.

As his eyes got used to the bright sunlight, Crocodile held the rail and looked out at the sea.

He stared at the unmoving water.

"She didn't steer us _there_, did she?" he turned to Daz with a look of annoyance mixed with anger.

"I hate the Calm Belt," was Daz's reply.

Crocodile turned around stiffly.

"Hawke!" he bellowed.

There was no answer.

"I'm amazed we haven't been attacked by sea kings," Daz muttered when there was no reply.

The pair made their way around to the stern.

Hawke was sitting on the deck, slumped against the rail, and clutching an oar that was lying at her feet.

"She's fast asleep," muttered Daz.

Crocodile stared down at the girl, smirking slightly at the hint of relief in his first mate's voice.

"Is she so desperate to see Strawhat that she sailed willingly into this ocean with nothing but a paddle?" he muttered.

Hawke shifted in her sleep.

"Luffy," she mumbled, letting go of the oar.

The two men stared down at her.

"Well," sighed Crocodile, "You get her inside. I'll take over here."

Daz raised an eyebrow at him, but he picked up Hawke and entered the ship.

"It's been a week already," Crocodile called after him, "My wounds are well on the way to being healed."

He sat down, with great effort, and picked up the oar. He guessed that if he went to far off course the girl would wake up and scream at him, so he just kept the boat going the way it had been pointing.

"I wonder how she can sense his whereabouts like that," he muttered, "If its Haki, then it's very highly developed."

He recalled that he had seen her use Busoshoku Haki during their escape from Impel Down, while she fought the assistant warden.

_Could she be capable of using both types?_ he wondered, _That would be very interesting._

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

The day passed quickly. Crocodile paddled as long as he could manage, finding the exercise a relief from his recent inactivity. Daz found a second oar under a bench at the bow of the boat and joined him at the stern.

Both men were silent for the most part, which is just how Crocodile liked it.

The sun soon began to sink below the horizon and Hawke still hadn't woken up. Crocodile let out a groan as he lifted his paddle back onto the deck.

"We'll drop anchor here for the night," he scowled, reaching for his cane.

Daz let the anchor loose. The splash broke the silence loudly, drawing Crocodiles gaze out to the horizon.

"It's strange," he muttered, "I would have expected to be eaten by now…"

Daz followed his gaze and grunted.

"Maybe it's a sign," he said.

Crocodile smirked and let out a dark chuckle.

"You believe in such stupid things," he said.

He struggled to a standing position and leaned heavily on the railing.

"Where are you taking us, Angel?" he muttered, his eyes finding the horizon again.

Daz put the two oars in the kitchen and then stuck his head back out the door.

"There's leftovers," he grunted.

Crocodile shot him a hard stare.

"If she doesn't wake up I'll have to suffer through your cooking, won't I?" he sneered.

"Unfortunately, yes," was the reply.

Then Daz went back into the kitchen to begin preparing the meal. Crocodile glanced at the door to the kitchen, then crossed the deck and cracked opened the door to the bedroom.

Daz had put Hawke in his own bed. Crocodile could see her hair sprawled over the pillow and watched her side rise and fall with her breath. She hadn't woken up screaming, so he supposed she had been over-exhausted and would be asleep for a while yet.

He closed the door quietly and headed to the kitchen, feeling strangely reassured. He couldn't have his key to power dying of exhaustion on him.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

The night passed very slowly for Crocodile. He found himself feeling uncomfortable with the fact that Hawke was sleeping in the bed next to his. She hadn't woken up yet, and Daz had decided to let her keep the bed and was snoring on the floor by the door.

_Like the loyal dog that he is_, the sand man thought with a smirk.

Crocodile shifted his body, frowning as pain shot through his abdomen, and turned his head so he could look over at the girl laying surprisingly close to him. She was sleeping on her side, facing his direction and had a peaceful look on her face.

He thought back to the war at Marineford.

_You made me get too involved_, he scowled.

He had let the world know that his reasons for stopping the first execution attempt on Fire Fist was that his hatred for the marines was greater than his hatred for Whitebeard.

That hadn't been the whole truth, however. The only reason he had stayed at Marineford after the Yonko had shown his incredible weakness by being stabbed by his own crew member, was Hawke's presence. Afterall, if he wanted what was left of his goal to succeed, he needed her to survive this battle.

He had kept an eye on her, staying in the background until she had been caught by Sengoku. And even then, the only reason he had cut down the executioners was to make it look like he wasn't saving only Hawke from being captured by the Navy. He didn't want that kind of suspicious attention focused on him. After she had fallen free and he and Doflamingo had settled their little dispute, he had continued to shadow her through the battlefield. But he'd had to intervene again when the stupid brat almost got cut down by Mihawk.

He had actually almost let Akainu finish off Strawhat, but again, Hawke had forced him into action. He had watched her fighting through the crowd, trying to reach the area where Fire Fist and Strawhat were. He remembered hearing her screams above the noise of the war as clear as if he had been standing beside her, and for some reason this unsettled him. She had almost reached the two boys when a marine soldier flung his gun back in preparation for an attack. The butt of his weapon had hit Hawke hard in the side of her head, the momentum actually spinning her around to face him, and allowing him to see the pain and shock in her eyes before she collapsed.

He knew that the battle had just passed its turning point, and that if the Dark Angel was left laying there, she would get killed or captured. So he'd taken that as his sign to move ahead with his plan. But Hawke hadn't quite been unconscious yet and when he'd picked her up, she had mumbled something about helping Luffy and Ace. And, since Crocodile didn't feel like giving the marines another victory, he'd obliged her.

Crocodile glared across the room.

_Why did you have to be involved with those two, of all the stupid rookies_? he thought, rolling over to face to wall.

It took a few more hours, but eventually Crocodile fell into a restful sleep.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

The next day began in a similar way as the last. Crocodile was paddling in the stern and Daz was fishing off the bow, trying to catch something for their breakfast

Crocodile was taking a break from paddling because his arms were getting sore, when the bedroom door opened and Hawke came out on deck.

"Good morning, Angel," he grunted at her.

She glanced over at him with groggy eyes. He could tell she was still half asleep.

"'morning, Crocoda…" she mumbled before stumbling into the kitchen.

Crocodile froze, almost dropping the paddle as he did so.

"What did you just call me?" he growled, staring at the kitchen door.

He hadn't been called that for twenty odd years. And he was more than a little unsettled at hearing it again.

_Will you ever give me peace?!_ He glowered at the water, _stupid woman!_

Just then, Daz came around from the bow holding a seaking. Though it was very small by seaking standards, it was still large enough that he had to hoist it over his shoulder in order to carry it.

"Nice catch," Crocodile called over, "That's the first one we've seen."

Daz shot him a smirk then entered the kitchen.

A few moments later, he could hear Hawke's voice and the clanging of pots and pans.

_So she's speaking again_, he thought as he resumed his paddling.

Just then, Hawke came bursting out of the kitchen. She was fully awake now.

"Crocodile!" she seethed, "What are you doing?! Your wounds haven't healed enough for you to be doing that much work."

Crocodile's frown returned and he continued to paddle.

"What I do with my body is none of your concern now that I can move around," he snapped, scowling, "I've been lying in bed for days, I'm fit to get up now."

Hawke stormed up to him.

"But they could still re-open or you could tear something," she pulled on his arm, "Please go back inside."

"I see your vow of silence has broken," Crocodile smirked as he shook off her hand.

Hawke stood back and scowled at him.

Crocodile sighed.

"We had a deal," he stated, "You have been fulfilling your end, now I must fulfill mine. I am not a man who goes back on his word."

Hawke shot him a dark stare.

"Oh really?" she retorted, "You never gave me that impression."

She whirled around and stomped off towards the sleeping quarters.

Crocodile shrugged his shoulders. He didn't blame her for being wary of trusting him, he wasn't an easy man to trust. And he himself didn't trust anyone… _not anymore._

Just then Hawke reappeared and took a few steps towards him. He stopped paddling and looked over at her.

"Here," she muttered and tossed him two objects, "I know you want one."

Crocodile reached out and grabbed them out of the air. As he did so, Hawke spun around and went back into the kitchen.

Looking at the objects she'd thrown, Crocodile raised his eyebrows. She had given him his lighter and a cigar.

It was true that he had not smoked since Marineford. He had been having cravings, but the pain from his wounds had been distracting him. That effect had been wearing off as his wounds began healing over, but for some reason he hadn't picked up a cigar since that night when Hawke had taken one from him.

_I mean, it isn't like she forbade me_, he thought, lighting the cigar and enjoying the taste of the smoke, _and I wouldn't listen to a little shrimp like her, even if she's Cielle's.._.

He clenched his teeth down on his cigar. Why did he feel like he was lying to himself?! There was no way he'd take orders from anyone!

He scowled at the ocean.

_Letting someone so young and stupid have any influence over me is ridiculous!_ He seethed internally, vowing to never let it happen again while also refusing to believe that it had happened.

His gaze returned to the horizon and he stiffened. There was a dark speck on the sea ahead of them.

_It might just be a mirage_, he thought, refraining from raising the alarm.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Crocodile continued to paddle, his cigar seemed to have given him a new source of energy.

Hawke came out and handed him a bowl of seaking chowder.

"Eat up," she muttered, "I made some steaks for later."

Crocodile watched as she shifted her weight from foot to foot, waiting for him to finish his meal.

"You're getting restless," he commented.

"Mmm?" Hawke grunted absentmindedly, "Yeah."

Crocodile gave her a smirk.

This seemed to catch her attention.

"What?" she snapped, looking down at him.

Crocodile noticed a shadow flickering behind her eyes.

"Why don't you sit," he said, motioning to the deck at her feet, "You moving around pointlessly is annoying."

Hawke frowned, but she sat down lightly.

They sat in silence for a few moments. Hawke was still restless, rubbing her hands down her legs and arms, playing with her hair.

Crocodile finished his lunch in silence and then picked up the oar and began paddling again.

"Are you sure you don't want to rest?" Hawke asked him, "You shouldn't over exert yourself."

"We'll move faster if I do the paddling," Crocodile muttered, rolling his eyes, "And I want to get out of the Calm belt as soon as possible."

Hawke blinked at him, then she lowered her eyes to the deck.

"Thank you," she said quietly, tracing the wood grain with her fingers.

Crocodile shot her a look out of the corner of his eye. He saw the slight tremor run through her body and saw her fists clench for a few moments before relaxing again. He grunted in response.

She lifted her head, her eyes seemed dull.

"But surely Daz could do it too," she said, "He's just as strong as you. And if you get hurt again, my end of the deal will break."

Crocodile smirked.

"I'm touched by your concern," he sneered, "But if you think that Mister 1 is on the same level as me, you are sorely mistaken."

"I wasn't concerned," snapped Hawke, standing up and taking his dishes, "I just don't want to break our deal either."

She stalked off to the kitchen and slammed the door.

As the morning turned into the afternoon, the speck on the horizon became clearer and larger.

_Well, I can't deny that any longer_, he sighed.

"Land ahead!" he called loudly.

He heard some clanging and then Hawke burst out of the kitchen.

"Where, where?" she stuttered, half excited, half worried.

"Straight ahead," said Crocodile calmly, surprised that he didn't find her youthful demeanour intolerable.

Hawke turned and gasped as she saw the approaching land mass. She ran up to the rail.

"That's where he is!" she exclaimed, "He's there, I know it!"

Hawke ran around to the bow. As she disappeared from view, Daz came out of the kitchen and looked ahead to the island.

He turned and walked over to Crocodile.

"I checked the charts last night," he said in his usual serious tone, "The only island anywhere near this area is Amazon Lily, territory of the Kuja pirates."

Crocodile clenched his jaw and stared ahead at the distant island.

"The Island of Women? What is Strawhat doing there?" he muttered.

Hawke came speeding back around the deck again.

"Please let me fly," she begged, running up to Crocodile, "We're almost there! He's right there!"

Crocodile looked down at her desperate eyes, seeing the swirling waves of sadness, anger, frustration and regret that were simmering just under the surface. He felt an urge to agree to her demand, but he quickly stifled that strange feeling.

He shook his head.

"I can't have you running off until I'm fully healed," he grunted, frowning, and nodded to Daz, who picked up the oar and began paddling.

"But he's so close," she begged, clinging to his arm.

Crocodile roughly shook her off.

"It'll take us a few more hours to reach that island," he snapped, "You can wait."

Hawke let out an exasperated groan.

"If you let me use my wings, I can push this boat faster," she continued desperately.

"No," snapped Crocodile, "That's not part of our deal."

Hawke pulled on her hair in a fit of desperation.

Then she ran around to the front of the ship again.

"She might decide to swim," Daz said calmly as he continued to row.

Crocodile grunted.

"She's not that stupid," he said.

But he followed after her anyways.

Rounding the bow of the ship, he caught sight of Hawke sitting on the rail.

_She isn't going to jump after all, is she?_ He thought with a raised eyebrow.

But she didn't make a move.

As he approached her, he saw she was looking at something in her hands.

"Don't jump," he grunted as he leaned against the rail next to her.

Hawke started and shot him a glare before returning her gaze to the object in her hands.

"I'm not stupid," she muttered.

Crocodile's eyes widened as he recognized Cielle's picture.

"What are you doing with that?" he asked her.

"You gave it to me remember?" she said sarcastically, but then her shoulders relaxed, "It makes me feel better… for some reason," she mumbled.

Crocodile felt a small spike of interest. Even though she didn't know who she was looking at, she could sense that there was some connection between her and the woman in the photograph.

_She must have some Kenbunshoku Haki abilities as well_, he thought, _there's no other way she could sense things like that._

"What's the Howling Harpy?" Hawke asked suddenly.

Crocodile raised his eyebrows.

"It's a small tavern on an island on the Grand Line," he said slowly.

Hawke raised her face to look at him, her eyes less turbulent and a little curious.

"I can picture you two together," she said quietly before looking back at the photograph.

Crocodile glanced quickly at her, then looked ahead to the approaching island, his face betraying no emotion, despite the sudden uncomfortable feeling he'd gotten in the pit of his stomach.

"I'm flattered," he grunted in a disinterested tone.

Hawke let out a soft sigh, then she relapsed into a contemplative silence.

They sat quietly for a while.

"How did she die?" Hawke asked.

Crocodile was surprised at the sudden questions and saw she was staring at him resolutely, waiting for an answer. He pressed his lips together. Under any other circumstances, he would kill anyone who got anywhere close to this subject. But he didn't have that option with this girl, and if he wanted to have influence over her, he needed to give her something that would make her want to stick around on her own will. He ran the risk of her knowing about his past and holding it over his head at some point in the future, but if it meant that she decided to stay, then it was a sacrifice he was willing to make.

_Besides_, he told himself, _she would probably be able to tell if I lied to her._

He shrugged.

"She was sailing on a merchant vessel in the East Blue when the ship was attacked by pirates," Crocodile muttered, "That particular crew had a reputation for taking no prisoners."

He heard Hawke let out a small gasp and saw her clench the photo a little tighter.

"The East Blue?" she asked, "But I thought you met on the Grand Line?"

"We did," said Crocodile, "She decided to sail to a calmer place to live with her husband and child."

"Her husband!? A child?!" Hawke turned a little to face him, her eyes bright with curiosity, "Did you get married?!"

Crocodile lowered his gaze to the waves at the base of the ship.

_Waves?_ He noted, though didn't betray this surprise in his voice.

"No," he replied, his eyes searching the water and finding something very interesting happening below their boat.

_So that's why we're still alive,_ he realized, _but what is causing it?_

Hawke was silent for a few moments.

"Oh," she finally said, "Oh, I see."

Crocodile grunted and stopped leaning on the rail.

He'd had enough of being sentimental and he knew she wasn't going to leave.

"Don't fall off," he grunted and stalked back towards the stern.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Hawke watched as Crocodile left.

_But you still kept her picture_, she thought sadly.

She gazed down at the photo of Cielle.

"He still loves you," she told the picture, "In his own way."

She let her gaze return to the island ahead.

Crocodile had been right. With him and Daz paddling, they had made it half-way to the island since Crocodile had first raised the alarm. She could almost make out the shoreline now.

"I'm so close Luffy," she muttered.

She had been feeling a rising sense of urgency as soon as the island had come into view. The bubbling sea of emotions in her chest was almost beyond her control, she wouldn't be able to keep it in check for much longer. She needed to see Luffy now!

"Please be okay," she whispered, clenching the picture.

Her eyes fell to the picture in her hands, then fell down to the waves at the base of the boat.

_The waves…? Wait, what?!_

Hawke almost fell off the rail as she squirmed down and leaned out, trying to get a better look. There were waves on an ocean that had no wind! The ripples of water that fluttered around the ship were more than what should be created by a boat moving at a relatively slow pace through calm waters. Hawke stared down hard and thought she saw a gap between the water and the wood of the hull.

"What?" she muttered.

Getting down on her belly, she reached her hand down as far as she could.

She let out a little gasp as she felt a cold breeze chill her fingertips.

"Air?!" she exclaimed, "There's air between the boat and the water!"

_So we're floating?!_ She couldn't believe what she was seeing and feeling_, is this why no sea kings have eaten us?_

Hawke quickly withdrew her hand and got up, resting her chin on her fist.

"What is going on?" she muttered.

Then her eyes traveled upwards and saw the island growing ever closer.

_It doesn't matter now_, she thought, _we're almost there. Almost to Luffy!_

She felt the huge storm of emotions that she had been keeping in her chest begin churning again, but she forced it down, though just barely. She needed to see Luffy and make sure he was okay!


	55. Chapter 55: The Next Step Forward

**Chapter 55**

**The Next Step Forward**

The afternoon sun beat down on the water. The heat was making Hawke's vision spin. She clutched at her chest and bent double, letting out a groan.

_Just breathe_, she told herself as her stomach rolled over_, push it down, keep it down. You can't let go yet!_

She took a slow, deep breath and felt the world begin to settle again. Sitting up, Hawke wiped the sweat off her brow and focused her gaze on the island ahead; she could finally make out the shore clearly.

"What is that?" she wondered, squinting ahead.

There seemed to be a fence-like structure on one area near the edge of the dense forest that covered most of the island. She could make out some sort of yellow ship in the water in a small inlet below the fence.

Hawke eased her body off the rail and went around to the back of the ship.

Both men were near the helm. Daz was still paddling and Crocodile was leaning against the railing, keeping his weight off his injured leg.

"You should go lie down," Hawke mumbled as she approached the two men.

Crocodile merely grunted, causing her to roll her eyes.

"I saw a landing area up ahead," she said, "It looks like there's a fenced off portion of the jungle, and a ship's already docked there."

Daz lifted his head.

"Who are they?" he asked.

"I'm not sure," said Hawke, "It was a weird looking ship, and I didn't recognize the mark."

"Was it a yellow submarine?" asked Crocodile, lighting another cigar.

_He's taking full advantage of those now_, she thought, watching him smoke.

She turned her face away, getting a whiff of the cigar smell and feeling her stomach clench and her chest tighten.

"Yes, that makes sense," she said, making a choking noise, "It looked like it was half under water."

"Then those are the Heart pirates," grunted Daz, "Trafalgar Law is their captain. He took Strawhat and escaped Marineford."

Hawke's eyes lit up and she pushed down her nauseous feeling, turning to face the island.

"We're almost there," she whispered.

Just then, Daz stood up and squinted towards the shore.

"What is the Dark King doing there?" he asked.

"What?!" snapped Crocodile, turning his attention to the shore as well, "And that fishman's there too. There seems to be quite the gathering already."

Just then, there were many loud crashing noises and a flock of birds flew up from the jungle a ways away from the shore.

"What was that?" Hawke hurried to the rail.

_Something bad is happening,_ she felt in her gut.

"We have to hurry!" she turned frantically to the two men.

Daz and Crocodile exchanged glances.

"We don't know what's going on over there," muttered Crocodile, "And there are more strong pirates here than I expected."

Hawke stood tall and pointed her finger at Crocodile.

"You promised to take me to Luffy," she stated menacingly, her voice shaking, "If you intend to break that promise I don't care anymore, I've gotten this far. But take this stupid shackle off me!"

Crocodile looked down at her.

"We'll get there soon enough," he snapped and stalked off into the kitchen.

Hawke stared after him in confusion and watched as he reemerged carrying the other oar.

"Why didn't you get that this morning?!" she exclaimed.

"I wasn't anticipating a hurry," snapped Crocodile, "Be grateful that I got it out at all."

He began to kneel down, but Hawke snatched the oar from his hand.

"Don't be stupid," she snapped as she sat down and began paddling furiously.

Both men stared at her.

"What?!" she snapped, "Don't stop now!"

Daz blinked and resumed his strokes.

Crocodile turned away and smirked.

"Whatever," he sneered.

Hawke could feel her face flush and she began paddling as fast and as hard as she could.

_I will not let Crocodile mock me!_ She thought, _I will get to Luffy as fast as I can!_

When they reached the inlet Hawke slumped, panting, against the rail. But she didn't stay there for long.

Her mind was screaming at her. _Luffy's here! Move!_

She sprang up and dashed towards the yellow submarine floating just off the bow of their boat. She could see a man standing on it, watching them, but she ignored him and leapt off the boat without a backwards glance, landing on the roof of the sub.

She dashed passed the man with only a sidelong glance.

_That looks like Trafalgar Law_, she thought, recognizing him from Sabaody. He was staring at her, and she saw his eyes widen as she passed him, then turn towards the sea, lifting his hand and moving it through the air.

Ignoring this, Hawke sprinted across the roof of the submarine and leapt onto the tow line that was anchoring it to the shore. She didn't even stop to check her balance and just sped up the line, feeling like the air around her was pushing her forwards. She was almost at the top when the rope gave a little wobble. With a gasp, Hawke made a grab for the cliff that was no more than three feet in front of her, but she missed.

_Damn_! she screamed to herself.

She began to fall towards the water. But suddenly felt something catch her hand.

Looking up, she was greeted by a familiar face.

"Rayleigh-san!" she gasped, then a confused look passed over her face.

_What is he doing here?_ she thought.

But before she could voice her question, Rayleigh confronted her with his own.

"Now what are you doing here, Dark Angel?" he looked down at her with a smile.

"Luffy's here!" she panted.

Then she turned her head back towards the small ship still bobbing behind the submarine.

"Get this damned thing off me, Crocodile!" she shouted.

She couldn't see his reaction, but she felt the pressure around her ribs disappear.

She immediately spread her wings and rose up to land on the shore.

She stood facing Rayleigh, though she was having trouble seeing him; her eyes kept jumping to the forest behind him.

"Luffy…," she panted.

"He's run off into the jungle," said the Dark King, "I think it would be best if you waited here. He's quite upset."

But Hawke had taken off running as soon as the first sentence had left his lips, dashing off into the jungle, the leaves and branches moving in the slight breeze that followed her.

Rayleigh chuckled and lifted an eyebrow as he watched her disappear into the trees.

"Maybe this will work out for the best," he muttered.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Crocodile lifted his head.

"Oi, Silvers!" he called, "What are you doing here?"

Daz rowed the boat in closer to the cliff and dropped the anchor.

Rayleigh bent down on one knee and looked down at the two men.

"I was about to ask you the same question," he said, "What are you doing with the Dark Angel?"

Crocodile drew a breath on his cigar.

He had hoped that the fact that Hawke was with him would remain unknown.

"That is none of your concern," he grunted.

"And the same to you," replied Rayleigh, laughing and standing up.

Crocodile shrugged.

"So is Strawhat here?" he asked, "Hawke has been most anxious to see him."

There was a pause.

"Yes he is," came the reply, "Law here fixed him up."

Crocodile glanced over at the man standing on the submarine.

"So you're the Surgeon of Death?" he said casually, "The one who helped Strawhat escape Marineford."

The man made no move to reply.

"Why did you help him?" pushed Crocodile, beginning to get annoyed.

Law stood silent, but then he opened his mouth.

"I think I'm right in assuming that it's the same reason you helped both Strawhat and the Dark Angel escape," he said quietly.

Crocodile grunted.

"I was acting on my own interests," he said, drawing another breath on his cigar and blowing out the smoke.

Law smiled.

"And I was acting on mine," he said, then he paused and looked from the sea to the island, "There is no wind on this sea," he muttered, running his hand over his chin.

Just then, the hatch of the submarine opened and a man stuck his head out.

"We're ready to sail, Captain," he said, then stopped when he noticed Crocodile and Daz, "What are they doing here?"

"Never mind them, Shachi," said Law as he went over to the hatch, "We'll set off right away."

He stepped down and began to enter the submarine. He stopped and cast another smile at Crocodile, then one up at Rayleigh.

"I've done my part to usher in the new era," he said, "I trust you will do yours."

He closed the hatch and the submarine sank out of view.

Crocodile grunted.

"For a rookie, he's quite the prick," he snapped.

_And he notices to much_, he frowned as his eyes searched the dense forest on the island, _he felt it around her too._

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Hawke tore through the jungle, leaves and branches swiping at her from all sides. She could feel the pull stronger than ever. In fact, it was more like she was being dragged through the jungle instead of running through it. And as she ran, she felt the rumble of the storm in her chest growing ever stronger. But she sped on, she was moving so fast that she could feel the air moving through her hair and around her body. It was pushing her forwards. She saw the branches ahead of her sway and then part, but nothing appeared from behind them and she tore right through.

"Luffy!" she shouted, "Luffy where are you!"

She knew that she was getting closer.

Back when she had just entered the jungle, she had hear more crashing and the sounds of a fight. She had quickly determined that the pull was going in the same direction as the sounds and she had sprinted off as fast as she could.

"Luffy!" she cried, "Luffy!"

Her body was pushed and pulled through some bushes and found herself in a cleared area. Her hair flew out in front of her, flowing in a blast of air. Her eyes searched the space hurriedly. Another blast of air hit her face and Hawke felt her head turning in the direction it was blowing.

"My sister!" she heard an agonized voice pierce the silence, "I still have my sister and my crew!"

Just then, she eyes found a small figure on the ground at the far end of the clearing, kneeling in front of a large boulder. Hawke gasped as her heart felt like it was being squeezed by a strong fist. The breeze abruptly dropped away and the air stilled.

"Hawke! Zoro! Nami! Usopp! Sanji! Chopper! Robin! Franky! Brook! My friends are still here!" the sound of Luffy's voice rang out.

"Luffy!" she shouted again and sped towards him.

As she ran towards him, she saw him stand up.

"Hawke?" she heard his voice.

"How did she get here?" asked another voice, but Hawke didn't even register it.

"Luffy!" she cried and skidded to a halt right in front of him.

She stared.

His whole body was covered in bloody bandages, his hat was missing and his eyes and cheeks were soaked with tears.

"Hawke?..." he stared at her, unbelieving.

"I'm here, Luffy," she panted, "Don't worry. I'm here!"

Then she felt herself fly forward and wrap her arms around her brother. The storm thundered and rolled, heaving up and spreading through her chest.

Before she knew what was happening, she was sobbing her heart out over Luffy's shoulder. All her pent up, hidden feelings that she'd been swallowing while sailing with Crocodile spilled over in a huge flood.

All her sadness and guilt from Ace's death, all her terror from the nightmares that had followed, and her relief at finally being able to be with Luffy surged to the surface.

She felt Luffy sinking to the ground and she bent her knees to follow him. His arms gripped her tightly, even though his fingers were weak. She could feel him trembling as he clung to her.

"Hawke!" Luffy sobbed into her shoulder.

The two siblings sat there, crying out all their hurt, frustration and confusion. There was no need for words. They both mourned Ace's death in each others arms. Their sobs resounding up into the trees. Luffy mourning the passing of his beloved and idolized older brother, his heart aching and reeling in the face of such a loss. Hawke sobbing out all her frustration and regret at not being able to see Ace again, about not being able to get to know him, about being so close to him being free and then having that stolen right out from under their feet.

"I couldn't save him!" Luffy sobbed into her shoulder, "I couldn't save Ace!"

Hawke leaned back and held her brother's shoulders, guilt welling up in her chest again.

"I couldn't either Luffy!" she wailed, "I was so close, we tried so hard! He was free…"

Luffy stared at her. He seemed to have been shocked into not crying.

"What is it?" she whimpered, trying to wipe her tears away.

"I…," tears welled up in her brothers eyes again, "I thought I was all alone."

Hawke stared at him, then pulled him into a fierce hug.

"Luffy! You're never alone!" she cried, "I'm here! And even though they aren't here in person, the crew is always with you in spirit!"

She jerked him away from her again.

"How do you think they feel right now?!" she exclaimed, "Knowing what we just lost and not being able to come to you!"

Luffy's face was a blubbering mess. He bit his lip, but the sobs returned in full force.

"Haaaawwwwkkkkeeeee!" he wailed, lifting his head to the sky.

Hawke pulled him close and let him cry himself out.

Her tears slowly began to dry up as she watched Luffy take the first steps towards healing his broken heart. She felt her own heart doing the same.

They had lost Ace. A blow that had cut her heart and filled her with regret and guilt. But that must be nothing compared to what Luffy must be feeling. He had a much longer way to go to heal. Hawke needed to make sure he knew he was not alone.

She held him until his sobs became pants and his tears stopped.

"Luffy," she said quietly, letting go of him and taking his hand, "Let's go back and see Rayleigh-san."

Her captain looked at her and gave her a weak smile.

"Yeah," he mumbled and shakily stood up.

Hawke followed suit and felt his grip tighten around her fingers. She squeezed back and smiled, the motion of her lips feeling strange to her, but quite welcomed.

"Well, I think you are right," said a voice.

Hawke started and whirled around.

"Jinbei!?" she gasped, "Where did you come from?"

"I've been here the whole time," the fishman muttered grumpily.

"Oh, I'm sorry," she said blushing, "I didn't notice you."

"That much is obvious," he said, standing.

Hawke immediately stood tall and made a deep bow.

"Thank you so much!" she cried, "Jinbei, thank you for all that you've done!"

The Sea Knight hesitated for a moment, then bowed his head.

"You've no need to thank me Hawke-san," he said gruffly.

But Hawke looked up at him with shining eyes and smiled.

"Thank you!" she flew forward and wrapped her arms around the fishman as far as they could go.

"Oi!" Jinbei stiffened and awkwardly patted her on the head, "Y-you're welcome."

Hawke stood back and reached out for Luffy's hand again and they followed the fishman back to the fenced off area.

As they exited the jungle, Rayleigh stood and greeted them.

"I see you're feeling better," he said, holding out the precious straw hat.

Hawke took it and placed it gently onto Luffy's head.

Her brother nodded and squeezed her hand.

She smiled at him, then looked down into the inlet.

"They're still here?" she asked as she saw Crocodile and Daz sitting on the deck of their little ship.

"Why is Crocodile here?" asked Luffy, immediately raising his fists and bouncing over to the cliff edge, "Oi, Croc, you wanna fight?"

Crocodile looked up and raised his eyebrows at Luffy.

"No," he stated, then went back to reading a paper.

"Hmph," Luffy grunted.

"Crocodile helped me get here," Hawke explained to Luffy, "And neither of you are fit for fighting anyways," she added.

Suddenly a woman's voice rang out.

"Luffy! I've brought you your favourites."

Hawke looked around and saw a group of women emerging from the jungle.

As soon as they saw Hawke and Crocodile's boat, they stopped.

"Who are they!" a tall woman with black hair exclaimed, "And who is she!?"

_Boa Hancock!_ Hawke blinked_, what is she…?_

Then she looked at the rest of the group and noted they were all women.

_An island in the Calm Belt with only women on it_, she thought, _this must be Amazon Lily_!

Hancock rounded on her, her eyes gleaming with hatred.

Hawke felt Luffy let go of her hand.

"Who are you and what were you doing holding hands with my dear Luffy!?" Hancock seethed.

"Umm…," Hawke stuttered and took a few steps back.

"Hey, Hancock," laughed Luffy, his mouth full since he had already pounced on a large trolley of food that the women had brought with them, "That's my little sister, Hawke."

"Little sister?" Hancock looked down at her suspiciously, "Very well, you may bow."

Hawke blinked.

"Bow?" she asked.

"This is the Princess of the Snake Kingdom," said one of the women behind her, "You should show your respect."

"Oh," mumbled Hawke, "I'm sorry, Your Highness."

She bent her body into a stiff bow.

"That will do," said the princess, "Since your Luffy's sister, I suppose we must be introduced since you'll soon be my sister as well."

"What?" said Hawke, looking confusedly at Luffy.

"I told you I'm not marrying you," said Luffy through a mouth full of food.

"Oh Luffy, don't say that!" the woman blushed and did a childish pout.

Then she turned her attention back to Hawke.

"I am Boa Hancock, the Snake Princess of the Island of Women," she stated.

Hawke smiled, _So she's in love with Luffy_.

"It's a great pleasure, Big Sis," she said, "And I am Hawke."

"Oh aren't you just adorable," sang Hancock, patting her on the head.

Then the snake princess turned to the boat in the inlet.

"I see one man has left but two have taken his place," she said scathingly, "You are not allowed on this island. Only those men who are helping my dear Luffy are allowed on this small section of land deemed separated from the rest of my kingdom."

Crocodile grunted.

"I do not wish to set foot on this island anyways," he muttered.

"How dare you speak to me that way!" Hancock leaned over the cliff menacingly, reaching out her hands with her fingertips touching, "You will show me respect or will be punished for your evil hearts."

She stuck out her hands and said, "Mero Mero melo!"

A pink beam suddenly shot out from her hands and passed over Crocodile and Daz.

Hawke gasped.

Daz had turned to stone!

"What have you done to him?!" she cried, running over to the edge, "He didn't even do anything!"

But Hancock was staring at Crocodile.

"Why do you not turn to stone?" she snapped, "Your heart is anything but pure!"

Crocodile frowned at her.

"Forgive me for not wondering at your looks, Hancock," he growled.

"So rude!" whispered one of the women behind Hancock.

The Snake Princess tossed her head.

"I have no more time to waste on you," she snapped and turned to go, "So long as you don't set foot on my land, you may stay."

"Wait!" said Hawke, "Won't you turn Daz back to normal? He didn't do anything to upset you."

Hancock glanced at the stone man and rolled her eyes.

"Very well," she said, "But only because you are Luffy's blood and I don't want to anger my dear Luffy."

She cast her beam again and Daz slowly returned to normal.

Hawke saw Crocodile glance over at him.

"You shouldn't let your desires show so obviously," he smirked.

Daz shot him a glance and frowned, crossing his arms over his chest.

Just then Hawke heard Rayleigh's voice.

She looked over and saw him speaking with Luffy and Jinbei over by the, now almost empty, trolley of food.

She went over to join them as the group of women left the clearing.

"I know you'll be wanting to join your crew," Rayleigh was saying to Luffy, "But the three days have long since passed."

Luffy stopped chewing and glanced over at Rayleigh.

"I have a proposal," the Dark King continued, "You can either follow my advice or ignore it, it's completely your choice."

"What's your plan Rayleigh-san?" Hawke asked as she sat down.

The man smiled and explained the two year training period and the plan he had devised for informing the rest of the crew.

Hawke looked over at Luffy. She could tell he wanted to see their friends as soon as possible, but she felt that this was a very good plan.

"We aren't strong enough for the New World yet," she said quietly, "We need to train if we don't want to be obliterated as soon as we get there."

Luffy met her gaze, a frown on his face.

She knew he was thinking about their utter defeat at the hands of Kuma.

"Alright," he said, turning to Rayleigh, "We'll follow your plan."

"Excellent," smiled Rayleigh, looking satisfied, "We'll begin tomorrow."

Hawke started.

"So soon?" she asked worriedly, glancing longingly at Luffy.

Rayleigh smiled at her.

"I know you want to spend more time with your brother," he said, "But your crew should be informed of this plan as soon as possible," he glanced over at Luffy stuffing his face, then back to Hawke, "And I think you've already been a big help to him."

Hawke smiled sadly. She knew that Rayleigh was making the most logical decision.

"But where should I go?" she asked hesitantly, "What should I do?"

Luffy looked at her, then out to the sea.

"You came here with Croc?" he asked, his gaze floating to the mast of the small ship that was visible above the cliff.

Hawke nodded.

"I guess he rescued me from Marineford, though I don't know why he bothered," she said, following her brother's gaze, "I made a deal with him to make him come here, but I don't know why he's still here."

"Well why don't you stay with him?" asked Luffy, giving her a quizzical look, "I know he was mean before, but he helped us in Impel Down and at Marineford. I think he might be okay after all."

Hawke blinked at Luffy.

"Stay with Crocodile?!" she almost couldn't believe what she was hearing, "Why would I do that?"

"Well he's pretty strong," said Luffy, "And that other guy is too."

Hawke looked down at her lap.

_It's true that they're both really strong,_ she thought.

Then a memory came back to her. Back in Alabasta, Crocodile had seemed like he had known something about her and her family. If she wanted to find out more about that, he might be she needed to ask. He was the only clue she had.

Hawke looked back at the mast and sighed.

"But can I last two years with that man?" she asked herself out loud.

Rayleigh laughed.

"There are many men who are worse than Sir Crocodile," he smiled, "I heard that when he was sailing in his younger days, he was fair to all his crew, if a bit ruthless."

Hawke shuddered.

"Did you have to add in that last part?" she asked.

"You'll be fine," said Luffy, "I think he can make you stronger."

Hawke sighed. It seemed like her mind had been made up for her. She stood and stretched.

"I'll be right back, okay Luffy," she waved and went over to the cliff.

_I guess I should ask him…_

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Luffy watched after Hawke as she went over to the cliff edge.

"She wouldn't leave you if we didn't forced her," said Rayleigh quietly, knowing what was going through Luffy's mind.

The rubber boy looked back at Rayleigh with hurting eyes.

"She's really here, isn't she?" he whispered, "I thought I was dreaming..."

Rayleigh let out a chuckle.

"And hasn't she always been there for you?" he asked, picking up one of the lonely remaining fruits on the trolley.

"She just traveled an unimaginable distance in a very short period of time just to make sure you were okay," put in Jinbei.

Luffy returned his gaze to Hawke. She was standing at the edge of the cliff, talking down to the ship.

"She cares for you very much," continued Rayleigh, "You wouldn't be able to lose her even if you tried."

Luffy thought for a moment, then he gave Rayleigh a wide smile.

"Ace said she would always be there waiting for me," there was happiness and sadness mixed in his words.

Rayleigh leaned back and looked towards the girl on the cliff. She spread her wings and flew down out of sight.

"No doubt about that," he chuckled.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Hawke left Rayleigh and Luffy by the food trolley and went over to the cliff edge.

She stood looking down at Crocodile and Daz as they lounged about on the deck.

"Our deal is completed," she said, hands on hips, "I would have thought you'd be long gone."

Crocodile looked up at her.

"Yes, I did consider that course of action," he said slowly.

Daz shot him a curious look.

Hawke noticed.

"Well, since you're still here…" she trailed off, not knowing how to ask her question.

Crocodile lifted his eyebrow and Daz gave her a blank stare.

"I-I've just been informed of what my brother and our crew will be doing," Hawke hesitantly began again, "And it turns out we will be spending the next two years training ourselves before we attempt to take on the New World."

Crocodile stared up at her with hard eyes. Hawke thought he looked a little tense.

"That seems like a smart course of action," he said, blowing out a cloud of smoke.

Hawke nodded.

"So it would seem…" she continued nervously, "That I need to find someone strong to help me train."

She paused. There was no movement on the boat.

"A-actually," she stuttered, her fingers fidgeting with her jacket cuffs, "I was wondering…. I mean _you're_ both really strong and everything…"

To her surprise, she saw Crocodile's shoulders relax and small smirk flit over his lips, though it was only momentary and immediately replaced by a frown.

"And what makes you think you'll be welcome back on this ship?" he snapped.

Hawke blinked.

"Well you need a doctor and a cook on your crew," she said, "I could fill those positions. Plus if you don't want to have me, then why are you still here?"

Crocodile seemed a little shocked for a moment. But he quickly scowled and rolled his eyes.

"I'll tolerate it," he growled, "But you do one thing that upsets me and you get dumped over board."

Hawke looked down at the two men and realized she would have to see them for the next two years, and she wasn't totally terrified at the thought. This astounded her. She still wasn't at all comfortable around them, and she still held a grudge against Crocodile for keeping that shackle on her. But she thought that she would be able to handle sailing with these men.

_Plus Luffy thinks its best_, she thought, _so I guess I should at least try it out._

Hawke extended her wings and flew down to the deck.

"It's time to change your bandages," she said, "And I need to check your leg."

Crocodile grunted and turned to enter the ship, his cane thumping on the deck.

Hawke made a mental note to do the same for Luffy once she was done here.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

The next morning, Luffy pulled Hawke aside as Rayleigh and Jinbei discussed the day's journey.

"I won't be seeing you for a while," he said.

Hawke lowered her eyes.

"Yeah," she whispered quietly.

He took her hand in his.

"You better train really hard," he said with a smile, "Croc will help you get stronger! Once I let everyone know, they'll start training too!"

"Speaking of which," Hawke mustered a smile, "You're missing something very important."

"Huh? What?" Luffy looked confused.

Hawke pulled out a marker and started writing on his arm. She wrote 3D, then carefully crossed it out and wrote 2Y underneath.

"I'm sure everyone will understand this," she said, "Zoro might have a bit of trouble, but I'm sure he'll get it eventually."

Luffy laughed.

"Zoro'll be fine," he said, putting a hand on her shoulder.

Hawke looked up at Luffy and sighed.

He had told her about what had happened after Kuma had hit her at the Sabaody Archipelago. She could only assume that the rest of the crew had been thrown to places just as far as she and Luffy had been. But Zoro's whereabouts had been weighing heavily on her mind, and her heart.

Just then Rayleigh called over to them; they were ready to set sail.

Luffy waved, then put his hand on her shoulder.

"See you in two years at Sabaody?" he asked, a small choke in his voice.

Hawke held back her tears and threw her arms around her brother.

"I'll be there waiting for you," she whispered.

She squeezed him one more time and took a step back.

Luffy gave her a wide grin and his eyes lit up.

"I'll see you there!" he laughed as he turned and joined Rayleigh and Jinbei.

Hawke bit her lip to fight back her tears as she watched Luffy set off.

"Two years," she whispered, "That's a long time."

She took a breath and squared her shoulders, turning to the last people remaining in the inlet.

"Aren't you getting ready to sail?" she asked, leaning out over the cliff.

Crocodile frowned up at her.

"I'm just resting for a while," he snapped, puffing away on his cigar, "I strained myself quite badly to get here and I went all last night without any treatment."

Hawke couldn't help but smile. She had spent the night on the island sleeping in Luffy's arm. The siblings hadn't let each other go all night. Hawke found herself already missing his presence.

"I thought you said you were already healed," she crossed her arms.

"I said nothing of the sort," growled Crocodile turning and walking into the cabin.

Hawke smirked and shot a glance at Daz.

He stared at her blankly, then returned her smirk and started raising the anchor.

Hawke lifted her wings and flew down to land on the deck.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

**So we are getting close to the end of this story (about three more chapters). But don't panic! I'm planning to do another one for Hawke's adventures in the New World (58 chapters is pretty long after all). I'm also going to do a little "side story" that goes through what Hawke does during the time skip (I had so much fun writing it I thought I'd share ;P) So keep a look out for those once this story has concluded. **

**I'm so grateful for the reviews and the favs and follows! You guys are amazing! And so supportive! **


	56. Chapter 56: A New Era Begins

**A short chapter today :( The next chapter is coming soon though, promise! Happy reading.**

**Chapter 56**

**A New Era Begins**

Hawke made her way through the streets of a small town. A soft, white cloak was draped over her shoulders, with the hood pulled up to hide her face.

Since she had revealed herself to be the Dark Angel, she was aware that people would start recognizing her face and might hunt her down. The scout wasn't going to let herself get caught before she could return to Luffy! She wanted to take extra precautions when ashore not to be identified and had asked Crocodile for something to conceal her face until she could find a more permanent method of disguise. He had bought her this cloak, which she found was very helpful.

Hawke adjusted the bags of groceries on her arms and quickly made her way down to the harbour.

As she approached, she saw many people staring and whispering to each other.

"H-Hey! What is _he _doing on this island?"

"Shhh, he'll hear us!"

Hawke grit her teeth and pushed herself through the crowd. As she made it to the front, Crocodile and Daz came into view. She rolled her eyes. Crocodile was wearing his usual dark vest and cloak and Daz was wearing a suit. They both stuck out like sore thumbs.

_Although I'm sure I don't look like a local myself_, she thought, tugging the hood of the cloak further down her face.

She went over to the two men. Crocodile lifted his eyes from the newspaper he was reading. As Hawke approached him, he held it up to show her the front page.

Hawke snatched the paper out of his hands.

"He did it!" she sighed happily.

She looked at the picture of Luffy with his hat over his chest and head bowed. She could just make out the marks she had written on his arm. If you didn't know what to look for, you would miss it. But she knew that the rest of the crew would notice the unusual markings on their captain's arm.

"3D crossed out, then 2Y," she said quietly, "Not three days, but two years."

Crocodile laughed.

"It's only been three weeks since the war," he mused. "He should still be recovering after his near-death experience."

He shot a look at his first mate.

"Straw Hat is wounded," said Daz, "Do you really think wounds heal that easily?"

"You cheeky bastard," Crocodile smirked at him, "Are you trying to be sarcastic?"

Daz returned the smirk with a stone faced stare.

"Besides," said Crocodile as he stood, "My wounds are long since healed."

He smirked down at Hawke.

"To prove it, I'll return to the New World soon," he stated, "So full of memories."

The scout's eyes widened.

_The New World?!_ She thought nervously_, and his wounds are still pretty bad, he only just stopped using that cane._

"Are you coming with me?" Crocodile asked, looking at Daz.

"Of course I am," muttered the first mate.

The sand man smirked then turned towards Hawke.

She stared up at him.

"You promise to train me so that I can become stronger?" she asked.

"You'll serve as the cook and doctor on my crew?" he returned.

Hawke nodded.

"I'll serve on your crew," she agreed, "But I can't call you my captain."

"Fair enough," grunted Crocodile, sticking out his hand.

Hawke hesitated, but she reached out and shook the hand that had been offered.

"Were you serious..?" she ventured, lowering her arm, "About going to the New World?"

Crocodile sneered down at her, amusement showing in his eyes.

"Well, what better training is there than the real thing?" he asked.

Hawke gaped up at him in fear.

_I won't last a day_, she thought back to Sabaody.

"Don't worry," he said, seeing her face as he strolled past her, heading back towards the ship.

Hawke blinked and looked up at Crocodile's retreating back.

_Don't worry?_ She thought, _since when does he offer reassurance?_

Daz walked by, glancing own at her.

"We're a crew now, aren't we?" he muttered.

Hawke stared at his back as he made his way to the harbour.

_Yeah… I guess we are_, she admitted the strange thought.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

The paper rustled in his clenched hands. Zoro's eyes narrowed as he looked over the two papers for the hundredth time. He had figured out Luffy's orders days ago, but he kept going over the papers, and any new ones that had any mention of the War.

"What about Hawke?" he muttered for the hundredth time.

"Are you still on about her?!" Perona's shrill voice suddenly rang out from over his shoulder, causing the swordsman to jump.

"Stop doing that!" Zoro snapped at her before going back to ignoring her existence.

He read over the first paper that Mihawk had shown him, the one declaring Ace and Whitebeard's deaths. There was that one sentence, written at the very end, which had given him what little relief he could have in such a situation.

_The younger step-siblings of Portgas D. Ace, Monkey D. Luffy and the Dark Angel Hawke, have been reported missing_.

Zoro smirked as he finished the article and moved on to the next one. The one that had carried his captain's orders.

But this paper contained no mention of Hawke. Well, only orders for anyone who saw the Dark Angel to report it immediately.

"So she wasn't with him then," Zoro went over the information again, "Did they escape together? Or is she somewhere else?"

_Either way, she should have seen this by now_, he thought, pushing the paper aside and laying back onto his bed with a grunt.

He had felt extreme anxiety the first time he'd seen the paper and it had contained no news of Hawke. But as the days went by, he had been able to calm himself. He knew he could trust their scout to be as okay as he was, just like the rest of the crew. The fact that she had escaped the War was proof enough that she was alive and well. That and every paper following had contained warnings of the dangerous Dark Angel and that she should be captured immediately.

"I wonder how much stronger she'll be in two years?…" his eyes found the two black and gold blades lying on a red cloth on his nightstand.

_Those are what's going to get me through this_, he admitted inwardly. He still had a piece of her with him.

Letting out another grunt, he pushed himself off the bed and grabbed his swords.

"Just where do you think you're going?" Perona immediately floated up behind Zoro.

"Time to train," he muttered as he headed out to meet the baboons again.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

The door burst open without warning, sending wind and rain blowing around the shop.

"What the hell!" an old man exclaimed, putting down the newspaper he had been analyzing.

He got up from his seat at a small table and stared up at the tall, muscular silhouette standing in the doorway. A cloak billowed from around his shoulders and a hood concealed his face. The outline of a large broadsword could be seen strapped across his back.

"Who the hell are you?!" the old man snapped, "The shops closed!"

But the stranger ignored these words and stepped forward, letting the door close behind him. The old man took a step back before standing his ground.

"Oi!" he snapped, "If there's some work you want done then it can wait until the storm has passed. I have no materials here at the moment."

The strange man stood tall and he glanced around the mechanics shop without answering. He seemed to be looking for something.

"Where are you?" a low, raspy voice called out.

The old man looked confusedly up at the stranger and stepped protectively in front of a basket that sat on a chair behind him.

"Oh?" the stranger stepped forward and pushed the old man out of the way with ease, "In here?"

Large, scarred, hands reached out and gently lifted the basket lid, revealing a mass of black and grey feathers.

"Hey!" the old man shouted, beating the back of the stranger with an old broom, "Get away from him! Get out of my shop this instant!"

"Caracass!" the stranger's voice held notes of longing, happiness and relief as he reached out and stroked the feathers, completely ignoring the blows to his back.

The bird, who had been sleeping soundly, jerked his head as he woke up. Immediately sensing a different presence, the raven let out a startled squawk and clacked his beak loudly.

Then, to the old man's great surprise, the raven stared up at the strange man through his good eye and, after a silent pause, began hopping around and letting out chirps and caws, nipping the man's fingers lovingly.

"What?" the old man lowered his broom and stared disbelievingly.

The stranger lifted the raven onto his shoulder and turned to face him.

"What's wrong, Hayato?" the man stepped forward and lowered his hood, revealing long, disheveled, black hair and a very prominent chin, "Did you think I was never coming back for my old friend?"


	57. Chapter 57: Two Years at Sabaody!

**Here it is folks! This is the final chapter in this story. I won't be putting up anything new until the New Year, being busy with exams and the holidays and stuffs. Happy Holidays to you all! **

**Chapter 57**

**Two Years, At Sabaody Archipelago!**

Hawke had been sailing with Crocodile for about a month. And in that short time, she had already greatly improved her skills.

Crocodile was indeed a man of his word. His way of training was rigorous and stressful, but Hawke could already see results from it. Her perception was remarkably better, her muscles were already leaner, and she was learning a wider variety of knife attacks from Daz.

But Hawke found herself, not surprisingly, getting extremely lonely. She noticed that, more and more often, she would sit and look at the picture Crocodile had given her. Hawke wondered about her strange attraction to Cielle's photograph. She had tried approaching Crocodile about it many times, but he would usually brush her off with a grunt or another chore for her to do. Eventually she decided to drop the subject.

They were now making for the Sabaody Archipelago. Crocodile had fully recovered and decided that it was time to move forward. He wanted to go the Archipelago to buy a larger ship and recruit more crew members before he crossed to the New World. This small craft was not to his tastes at all, especially since he had to help out with the sailing sometimes.

Hawke was excited to see the last Sea, but felt a little guilty about being the first of her crew to do so. _Just think of it as a full scale scouting mission for Luffy_, she told herself. She was going to make sure the crew didn't get surprised like the last time.

Hawke had to admit she wasn't actually hating her circumstances, despite the fact that she was sailing alone with two grown men instead of her friends. But still, they weren't her crew…

One evening, while she was busy mopping the deck, she found her thoughts wandering back to the events of Sabaody and began worrying about Zoro again.

She had been trying to keep herself distracted with her chores and training, but he always seemed to be right at the edge of her mind, ready to jump in as soon as her brain wasn't busy.

The events of Impel Down and Marineford had temporarily pushed the swordsman to the back of her mind, but now that she had taken the first, baby step towards moving forwards again, Zoro kept inching his way to the front.

Her heart ached every time she recalled the last time she'd seen the swordsman. His eyes full of horror and pain. Her hand reaching down to her helpless crewmate, but never touching. Hawke felt the warmth of tears falling down her cheeks.

She clutched the handle of the mop tightly to try and stop her hands from shaking, but she only succeeded in spraying dirty water over the newly cleaned deck.

_Zoro…_

Just then she heard footsteps coming up behind her.

"Making more work for yourself?" she heard Daz ask mockingly.

"Shut up!" she whirled around, in no mood for his teasing.

Daz stared when he saw her tear stained face.

"Is everything okay, Shrimp?" he asked, his face expressionless.

Hawke spun back around and began cleaning up the mess she had made.

"I'm fine!" she retorted, her shoulders and voice shaking, "Since when do you pay attention to how I'm feeling?"

"Are you saying I have no interest in the welfare of this crew?" he asked, a hint of annoyance in his voice.

"I'm not suggesting anything!" Hawke threw her hands in the air in exasperation.

She whirled around and picked up her mop and bucket.

"Just go away," she muttered and stalked off.

Hawke put the mop and bucket away and rested on the rail, watching the waves.

Her emotions were reeling inside her. She instantly felt bad about her outburst towards Daz. He had been kind enough to her and made sure she was comfortable, giving her her own cot in the kitchen until they could buy a larger boat. He and Crocodile always went into land whenever she said she needed something. And she hadn't been subjected to any violence since they had set off, other than their training bouts.

But she was lonely. She was constantly wrestling with her worries for Luffy, the crew and Zoro, and she was still far from getting over the fact that she had lost her eldest brother. The last two being the foremost on her mind since she already knew where Luffy was and that he was in good hands.

She would tell herself that Zoro was more than capable of looking after himself and she knew that he was intent on training so he would be kept busy. But she did wonder if he ever stopped and thought about her. Or if there was someone there to treat him when he overdid himself in his training. Or if…

Hawke shut her eyes and shook her head. But this only allowed for another man to fill her mind.

_If only she hadn't dropped that stupid key! Ace would've survived… it was all her fault…_

_You're getting too worked up again_, she quickly snapped herself out of her thoughts, reaching into her pocket.

As she removed her hand, something fell out of her jacket and clattered to the floor.

Her eyes followed the bouncing object.

The red bead…

_Oh no,_ Hawke thought as visions of Ace filled her head.

She reached shakily down and extended her fingers towards the little red sphere.

But her hand didn't quite reach. She collapsed onto the deck and lay there, crying softly.

_It's all your fault_! she berated herself, _why did you fail?_

Her shoulders shook and she sobbed silently as waves of guilt and regret washed over her.

_He was only three years older than me_, her thoughts continued to cut into her_, he had so much life left. And you caused that to be taken away. You!_

"No!" Hawke whimpered, curling up into a little ball, "No! It's not true!"

_Of course it is_, her thoughts whirled around her head, _if you had freed him then everything would have turned out fine._

"NO!" Hawke wailed, "No it's not my fault! It's not my fault! It's not my fault!"

"You're right," a deep voice resonated from behind her.

Hawke jerked up, startled, and hastily wiped the tears from her eyes and cheeks.

"It's not your fault that Fire Fist Ace died," Crocodile stepped around the edge of the cabin.

Hawke stared up at him, sniffling.

"What happened, happened," the hooked man drew a long breath on his cigar, "There's nothing anyone can do to change the past. And it wasn't anyone's fault."

Hawke took deep breaths to try and calm herself. She felt her hand clench around something and looked down. Her hand, which had stopped short of the bead, was wrapped around a crumpled paper. She opened her fist and saw Cielle's photograph.

"You still need to work on your perception," Crocodile continued, staring down at her as she smoothed out the picture, "You should have been able to tell there was someone approaching you."

Hawke looked up and wiped her eyes again.

"Sorry," she muttered.

She used the rail to pull herself up and stared out at the water. The sun had sunk below the horizon and the soft glow of lantern-light from inside the cabin lit up the tips of the waves.

"Daz told me you weren't feeling particularly friendly this evening," Crocodile said, staying back.

Hawke wondered why he was still standing there, but she responded anyways.

"He told you that, did he?" she mumbled.

There was a pause, then she heard footsteps retreating.

"Just make sure not to slack off," the sand man grunted over his shoulder, "I don't make empty threats. You will be thrown overboard if you displease me."

Hawke threw a glare at his back as it disappeared around the cabin and then let her gaze soften as it fell to the water.

"What a jerk," she mumbled as she picked up the red bead and put it back into her pocket.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Hawke grunted with effort as she pulled in the taught sail. Though today was sunny and clear, the wind was fierce and one of the rivets had popped, causing it to pull and tear at the rest of the sail. Hawke struggled to lower the sail against the strong wind, and then let out a gasp as it was suddenly dropped into her hands.

"At least shout when you're having trouble," Daz suddenly grunted in her ear.

Hawke stiffened, but opted to ignore him and continued her work. She put her sewing needle between her teeth as she pulled the cloth together and placed the new rivet where it should be. She threaded the needle and then quickly sewed it into place.

She frowned at her work, not because it wasn't done well, it was, but because she knew Daz was still standing behind her.

_Is he going to fight me?_ she thought, standing and pulling the sail back up.

The wind immediately caught and their ship was on it's way again, towards Sabaody. Hawke stiffened when she heard movement from behind her.

"Oi," Daz's voice was closer than before.

Hawke clenched her fists and planted her foot down, spinning and swinging her fist towards the sound. Her hand made contact, but was immediately enclosed and incapacitated. Hawke frowned as Daz's fingers closed around her fist.

"Not this time," he said, eyeing her face, "I wanted to ask you something."

Hawke lifted an eyebrow and let her arm relax.

"What?" she asked quietly, "And I'm sorry for getting angry last night."

The knife man shrugged his shoulders.

Just then, there was a snap and a ripping sound. Hawke jerked her head up to see the sail she had just repaired torn in half, with the unattached section flapping wildly in the wind.

"Geez," she muttered as she did a quick scan of the sea around them, "That scared me."

Then she leapt up and spread her wings, taking a moment to steady herself against the wind before grabbing the flailing fabric. She hovered, with difficulty, near the mast as she quickly undid the rigging and brought the entire sail down to the deck.

"Here," she handed an end of the sail to Daz and sat down on the deck, taking out her needle and thread again, "Hold it tight while I fix this."

The knife man silently did as she asked, sitting down on the deck across from her and holding the sail taught.

Hawke began her work and then glanced up at Daz, giving him a questioning look as she saw him staring not so subtly at her wings.

_He was going to ask me something, right?_ she thought, rustling her feathers. She'd left them out because she was really enjoying the feeling of the wind through her feathers. It had been a long time since she'd felt safe enough to bring them out.

Daz kept eyeing her wings as he spoke.

"So it isn't a devil fruit power?" he muttered.

Hawke stiffened, but continued her work.

"No," she shook her head, "I never ate a devil fruit. The sea or seaprism stone don't have any effect on me."

There was a pause.

"So were you born… like that?" Daz sounded interested in her. And maybe that was the reason she answered.

Hawke had never intended to tell these men a lot about herself, though she knew full well that over the course of the next two years some of her past would have to be revealed. But the mere fact that Daz actually seemed interested in her lowered her guard.

"No," she mumbled, "I was born… normal."

She gave him a weak smile before turning her attention back to the sail. She heard a thump and looked up to see Crocodile had emerged from the sleeping quarters and was standing behind Daz. It seemed he had caught the last part of their conversation.

"Is what you told Garp true, back when he visited the prison?" the sand man's voice sounded curious.

Hawke frowned. _Not interested, just curious. And that's right, I told Grampa I was experimented on when he asked… that was before I knew Crocodile was so close._

She nodded her head but remained silent. Finishing her mending, she stood and went over to the mast. With Daz's help, the sail was soon up and they were on their way again.

"Yes," she said, gesturing to her wings, "I got these when I was fourteen."

Crocodile and Daz were both staring at her. Then the hooked man turned and went into the kitchen.

Hawke's eyes followed him as the door closed.

"I hope he doesn't eat the stuff I made for supper again," she muttered under her breath.

Daz blinked and Hawke thought she saw his lip twitch, but then his eyes locked onto hers and he grew serious.

"So how did you get them?" he asked.

Hawke blinked and gave the first mate a hard stare. He was definitely easier to talk to than Crocodile was. But now her guard was back up.

"Crocodile already knows, so why not just ask him?" she snapped.

Daz shrugged.

Hawke smirked and lifted an eyebrow.

_Crocodile didn't tell him anything_, she realized, _I wonder why Daz is so loyal to him…_

"Why should I tell you any more? You'll just go and tell him," she frowned at the man.

"Is there something you don't want the Boss to know?" Daz asked.

Hawke blinked. She thought about this question. _Do I care if Crocodile and Daz know the details of my past?_ Knowing Crocodile, he would probably find a way to use it against her. And Daz would undoubtedly tell his Boss anything she told him. The scout ran her hand through her hair and sighed.

_Damn it!_ she thought, then she took a breath, _well, it'll come up again for sure. Might as well tell a bit now._

She crossed her arms and leaned back against the rail.

"I was a science experiment," she said calmly, watching Daz for his reaction, "That's where I got my tattoo. The tattooed wings become real whenever I want them."

She splayed her wings out for effect, then let them return to their tattoo form.

The first mate returned her stare, then lowered his eyes and turned to face the water.

"Not what you expected?" Hawke cocked an eyebrow at his back.

Daz shrugged his shoulders.

"Not exactly," he muttered, "It must've been difficult."

Hawke blinked.

"Mmm," she grunted, not offering a proper response.

Daz turned to face her again.

"Is there anything else you're capable of?" he asked, "Since we'll be living together from now on we should know your abilities."

Hawke eyed him warily, but then shrugged her shoulders. Crocodile already knew most of what she could do.

"I can talk to birds," she began listing on her fingers, "My eyesight is above average, I'm so light because I have hollow bones… and then the wings and the no devil fruit things."

She finished and stood facing the knife man.

"That's about it," she muttered.

She purposely left out anything to do with her father or the prophecy. She wasn't going to share any information she wasn't sure of, especially with these two.

Daz nodded and turned, motioning for her to follow him.

"Come on," he said, "We'll do target practice while the Boss is resting. This time you can fly."

Hawke made her way after the first mate and feeling excited all of a sudden.

_I forgot how much I liked training,_ she thought, recalling her sessions with Zoro and feeling a twinge in her heart, _I'll get strong enough so you don't have to worry about me, Zoro._

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Hawke tapped on the door to the sleeping quarters.

"Enter," replied a deep voice.

Hawke turned the handle and walked into the room.

Crocodile was sitting on the chair reading a newspaper.

"What is it?" he asked, looking at little annoyed at her interruption.

"Well, since we're arriving at Sabaody tonight," Hawke said quietly, "I was wondering if I could borrow some money to get some new clothes and some other supplies tomorrow."

Crocodile raised his eyebrow at her.

"Why do you need more clothes?" he snapped, "That's stupid."

Hawke rolled her eyes.

"Please?" she asked, "I can't go wearing the same thing I always do," she motioned to her jacket, "People will recognize me."

Crocodile seemed to see the logic in her argument. He reached into his cloak and drew out a small bag. Hawke heard the rattle of coins as he tossed it over to her.

"You better not spend all of that," he muttered, "And I already bought you that cloak, you shouldn't need anything else."

"Thanks!" Hawke smiled at him and left the room.

Crocodile watched after her.

_She's always so annoyingly happy_, he thought, letting his eyes go back to the paper, _that's good. Happiness leads to trust and weakness._

He was going to make sure he had as much influence over Hawke as possible. He would make her bend to his will...

_Well, I suppose a more permanent disguise would be better,_ he thought, frowning at an article that speculated on the missing Dark Angel and the steps the government was taking to try and find her, _I hope there aren't any more incidents like the one at Amazon Lily. But since we won't be anywhere near the Calm Belt, it should be fine._

Crocodile had refrained from informing Hawke about the strange wind that had sprung to life around her during their arrival on the Island of Women. He knew that she hadn't noticed it, or hadn't been alarmed by it. But that rookie, Trafalgar Law, had noticed it as well and Crocodile did not like that.

_If we run across him again, I will have to let him know to tread carefully,_ he turned the page and continued to scan over the headlines.

He paused as he heard Hawke's voice come through the wall, followed by the banging of pots and pans.

_A girl who can make wind on a windless sea…,_ he frowned_, there's more to you than meets the eye, Dark Angel. Even more than I expected._

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

The next day, Hawke prepared an early breakfast, then covered herself in her white cloak and left the ship, making for the shopping district of the Sabaody Archipelago. She needed to get what she wanted and get back to the ship before Crocodile bought a new one and began recruiting new crew members.

She quickly went through the shops until she found all that she was looking for.

"This'll be perfect," she muttered as she made her way back to the ship.

As she walked back up the gang plank, Daz came out of the sleeping quarters.

"Where'd you go so early?" he grunted.

Hawke took off her hood and smiled.

"Don't worry," she said, "Breakfast is warming on the stove."

Daz gave her a stare before turning and going into the kitchen.

Hawke followed him, placing her purchases in a corner by her folded up bed.

"So we get a new ship today?" she asked excitedly.

"Yep," muttered Daz, spooning some oatmeal into his bowl.

"I better get my own room," Hawke said, taking off her cloak, "I'm not going to share a room with bunch of stinky men and I refuse to be stuck in the kitchen for two years!"

Daz sent her a stare, then nodded.

"I'll let the Boss know," he grunted and began eating.

Hawke had just got her own breakfast when Crocodile entered the kitchen.

"You're up early," she said.

Crocodile grunted.

"We need to get the word out that we're recruiting as soon as possible," he muttered, sitting down at the table, "And the shipyards are pretty far from here."

Hawke spooned some porridge into another bowl and placed it in front of him.

"How big of a crew do you want?" she asked.

Crocodile seemed to ponder her question for a few moments.

"At least twenty," he muttered, "Depends on the size of the ship."

They sat eating in silence. Hawke was busy imagining what the new ship would look like.

_Maybe it'll be like the Sunny,_ she thought with a smile, _or even bigger!_

Crocodile finished his meal and stood, gesturing to Daz.

"We'll be back around noon," he said to Hawke as the two exited the kitchen, "Stay out of sight, and don't let the ship get stolen."

"Yes, sir!" Hawke called after him, locking the kitchen door after them.

She quickly cleaned up the dishes and filled the sink with warm water.

She took out a bottle from her shopping bags.

"Here goes nothing!" she stated and unscrewed it.

**ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Crocodile was feeling pretty pleased with himself.

He had managed to secure the largest, nicest ship in the yard for himself for a decent price, the shipwright had even offered to take the little dingy off his hands for a decent price, and he had already gotten the word around that he was recruiting.

The ship had the perfect figurehead and had enough room so he, Daz and Hawke could each have their own sleeping quarters.

Crocodile had left Daz back at the bar, in charge of taking the names down, and was making his way back to his old ship.

_Those men are exactly the type I want,_ he thought with a sneer,_ they're bloodthirsty and greedy, they'll be easy to control._

He walked up the gang plank and knocked on the kitchen door.

"It's just me for lunch," he said, turning the handle and frowning when it didn't open, "Mister 1 is still out."

"Okay," he heard Hawke reply, "I put your lunch by your bed. Don't come in here! I'll get the dishes later."

He raised his eyebrows at her warning, but wasn't in the mood to argue with her. He turned and went into the sleeping quarters.

There were two plates of chicken and salad, along with two glasses of lemonade on his nightstand.

He smirked and brought the chair over and began eating.

_I wonder what she's doing in there_, he thought as he drained his drink and reached over for Daz's plate, _and I'll have to tell her to make sure we always have wine in the stores_.

When he was finished, he went over and knocked on the door for a second time.

"I'll send Mister 1 back when we're ready to move ship," he said, "You get everything packed up around here."

"Okay," Hawke replied.

He could hear her moving around behind the door. But he remembered her earlier warning and ignored his urge to look inside. He turned and went back to the bar where he had left Daz.

Crocodile entered the bar and saw that the crowd had at least doubled in size in his absence. He stood back near the door, analyzing the men that would soon be under his command. He needed to make sure he could fully control them and make them fear him enough to be respected. He eyed the growing horde of men and felt satisfied in those regards.

_I'll need to keep a close eye on Hawke,_ he thought, watching some of them harass a waitress.

He checked himself.

_Well she is my property now_, he thought with a frown, _so it makes sense that I think of her safety._

After some time had passed and the crowd had grown almost too large for the bar, Crocodile approached Daz, who handed him a long list of names. He scanned it and then stood to face the crowd.

"All of you who wish to join my crew," he began, and was greeted by loud cheers, "I have just purchased a new galleon for our voyage. Follow me and you can tear the New World apart!"

More cheers rang around the bar.

Crocodile turned away and leaned down to speak into Daz's ear.

"Go get the brat and the supplies and meet us at the dock."

Daz nodded and stood, quietly exiting through the crowd.

"Alright you pitiful excuses for men," Crocodile snapped at the room in general, "Come with me."

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

Hawke finished the lunch dishes and dried her hands. She then quickly changed, pulling a shirt over her head and adjusted it in the mirror that hung over the sink.

"This is so different from what I usually wear," she muttered, turning in a circle to make sure her tattoo couldn't be seen, "But I guess that's the point."

She had a bright red, full-back, tank-top on with a brown vest over-top and black cargo pants that ended just above her ankles.

She made sure her hair was dry one more time and then began to braid her bangs.

"Wait!" she stopped herself, quickly undoing it, "I'll have to keep that out for a while."

Instead of her normal, lush brown locks, she had dyed her hair jet-black with a white streak down the left side. She thought it added flair and changed her appearance more than just changing her hair to black would've done.

She brushed her hair and put on some sandals. Then she gave herself one last check in the mirror before picking up her leather jacket and holding it out.

"You're going to have to take a break for a while," she muttered to the clothing in her hands.

As Hawke gently folded it, something fell out and bounced to the floor.

"You again!" she muttered as she picked up the red bead.

She felt a pang of sadness and regret.

"I'll keep you close so you don't get lost," she said, undoing her necklace.

Quickly slipping the bead onto the chain, she watched as it slid down to rest against the gold cross.

"Ace, Luffy…" she ran her fingers over both pendants.

Hawke held back the sigh that wanted to escape her and put her necklace back on, stuffing it into her shirt, then focused on packing up the remaining supplies.

After a time, she heard footsteps coming up the gang plank. She peeked out the window and saw Daz approaching.

_Well it looks like it's time_, she thought with a smile, _I wonder what he'll think._

"You ready, Shrimp?" Daz called as he opened the kitchen door.

"All set!" Hawke smiled and picked up her bags.

Turning back towards the door, she saw Daz was standing frozen.

"Do you like it?" she asked tentatively, "Can you tell it's me?"

"No," grunted the first mate.

"Good," smiled Hawke, opting to believe his answer was for her second question, "That's what I was going for."

Daz seemed to recover from the surprise.

"Well, lets get this stuff over to the new ship," he grunted.

He picked up the bags of bedding and kitchen supplies that Hawke had packed and put them into air balloons.

They headed down the dock and Hawke followed Daz through the groves.

As she trotted behind the first mate, she recalled the last time she'd been at the Archipelago.

_The next time I see these trees_, she thought determinedly, _I'll be able to take out three of those Pacifistas at once!_

"We're here," Daz grunted as they rounded a final corner.

Hawke looked up and gasped, almost letting go of her parcels.

"It's huge!" she exclaimed, taking in the immensity of Crocodile's new ship.

It was a galleon, dwarfing the Sunny by at least four times. The figurehead, reaching far out in front of the bow, was a sleek-snouted crocodile.

"Well that's fitting," she laughed and followed Daz over to the gang plank.

As she climbed onto the deck, the amount of men on the crew almost overwhelmed her.

"How many guys did you recruit?!" she muttered nervously to Daz.

"Fifty," he grunted down at her.

The men were busy moving around the deck. Some were painting Crocodile's mark on the sails and flag, others were preparing the ship for departure or bringing supplies into the hold.

"Follow me," Daz muttered and made his way to the upper deck and then into the ship.

Hawke stayed close behind him as they walked down a short hallway.

"This is the Boss's room," he grunted, motioning the first door on her left, "Mine's down there. That's the bathroom. And this is your room."

He pointed to the first door on the right.

"Yes!" Hawke exclaimed happily.

It was out of the way and quiet. _Perfect!_

She opened the door and put her few belongings on the bed.

"This is wonderful!" she gasped, looking around.

The room was quite spacious, very different from the small kitchen she'd become used to. The bed was a queen sized and she had two windows along the far wall, lighting up the room quite nicely. There was a decently sized closet and a wardrobe with a mirror hanging beside it along one wall.

Hawke quickly put her clothes away and looked around her new room and sighed.

"Well, this is where it starts," she said, going over to the window and looking down at the busy deck below her.

She heard footsteps coming down the hall and stiffened as they stopped in her doorway.

"Well that's quite the disguise," a voice came from behind her.

Hawke smiled and turned around. She was greeted by Crocodile's amused gaze.

"I can't have all these strange men knowing who I really am," she said, tossing her loose hair over her shoulder, "So for the next two years, I'm not the Dark Angel Hawke."

Crocodile's eyes widened and smirked.

"Nice hair," he grunted.

Hawke blushed and frowned.

"You shouldn't compliment people if you don't mean it," she snapped.

Crocodile ignored her and his eyes lingered on her exposed shoulder.

"Where'd you get that?" he asked, motioning to her scar.

Hawke looked down at the x-shaped mark above her heart.

"A little mishap with a god," she said mysteriously, giving Crocodile a sly look, "Maybe I'll tell you about it one day."

The sand man rolled his eyes at her.

"So what are we supposed to call you then?" he muttered.

Just then Daz walked by in the hall.

"How about Shrimp?" his face remained emotionless, but Hawke could tell he was smirking at her internally.

"Hey!" she stuttered, "Don't make it embarrassing!"

But Crocodile smirked.

"Shrimp it is," he sneered.

Hawke glared at him, but then lowered her eyes and sighed, giving him an exasperated look.

"It doesn't really matter I guess," she muttered, pouting.

Crocodile smirked again and lifted his hand.

"Come on," he grunted, "The men need to know who you are."

Hawke followed him down the hall and out onto the upper deck.

"That reminds me," she said as they watched the flurry of activity below them, "What's the name of your ship?"

"Name?" Crocodile shot her a sidelong glance.

"Yeah," Hawke looked up at him, "A ship that doesn't have a name won't be that good at sailing, will it?"

She smiled as she quoted her cyborg friend.

_I hope you're doing okay as well, Franky_, she thought, _everyone…_

Crocodile stood silent for a few moments, his hand stroking his chin.

Daz looked up at the flag.

"What about the King Serpent?" he muttered.

Crocodile shook his head.

"Not quite," he brought his hand down, "How about the Anima Nera?"

Hawke wrinkled her nose.

"Those sound so dark," she said, looking out at the figurehead.

_It kind of looks like a dragon from this angle_, she thought.

"I like the Soaring Dragon," she stated.

Crocodile stared down at her, then a smirk flitted across his lips.

"So it's settled," he said, "Drago Nero it is."

Hawke's brow furrowed as she thought this name over. Then she nodded.

"Sounds perfect," she said.

Daz nodded.

"I agree," he muttered.

Crocodile turned and made his way halfway down the stairs that led to the main deck. He stood tall and lifted his hook and hand.

His booming voice echoed across the deck.

"All hands!"

Hawke and Daz stood at the rail as all fifty men quickly gathered below them.

"Before we set sail, let's make some things clear," Crocodile's voice rumbled.

He motioned to Hawke and Daz.

"You've already met Daz here," he said, "He's the first mate, so the only rule that trumps his is mine. Obey his every order!"

The crowd of men cheered.

"And the girl is Shrimp, the cook and doctor," he said and scowled menacingly at the men, "And if you wish to go on living, you'll keep your hands to yourself!"

There were a couple quiet groans from the crowd, but no objections.

Hawke felt grateful towards Crocodile for those words of protection, but was a little surprised that he had given them.

She looked out over the massive deck and the large crew, then back to Daz and Crocodile.

_Maybe these two years will be okay after all_, she thought.

Her gaze traveled back towards the Archipelago, and she listened to its bubbles popping and the chatter of people.

"I'll meet you back here Luffy, Zoro, everyone," she whispered, her hand finding the gold charm and red bead on her necklace and gripping them tightly, "Two years, at the Sabaody Archipelago!"

Daz gave her a sidelong glance. Hawke realized he'd heard her and she blushed.

To her surprise, he put a hand on her shoulder.

"We'll make sure you survive 'til then," he grunted.

Hawke's eyes lit up and she gave him a wide smile.

"You aren't as cranky as you look," she giggled.

Daz immediately frowned and crossed his arms.

"Shut up, Shrimp," he snapped.

Hawke laughed and brought her attention back to Crocodile.

"So let's get underway!" he was saying, "Set sail for the New World!"

A roaring cheer erupted around the ship as the men began running around, eager to follow their new captain's order.

Hawke was still watching them as Crocodile came back up the stairs and approached them.

"Mister 1," he snapped, "I'll leave our descent to you."

Daz nodded and went down to the main deck.

"And shouldn't you be preparing a dinner for a fifty three person crew?" Crocodile peered down at Hawke.

She started and realized that, as she was the appointed cook and doctor, she would have a lot to keep herself busy.

"I'm going," she grumbled as she made her way down the stairs, "But remember you're supposed to be training me."

"Oh, I won't forget," he let out a menacing laugh.

Hawke shuddered. She knew she was in for a tough two years.

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

**The End**

**oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo**

**Hawke's adventures with the Straw Hat's will continue in the next story (I don't have a title for it yet, but I'll post the news here when I finally get it up). We will check back in with Hawke's arrival at Sabaody Archipelago! **

**Thank you soooooooooo much for reading and reviewing my story and I hope you'll all wait semi-patiently for the next chapter. You guys are amazing and wonderful and I love you!**


	58. Chapter 58

SOooooooo I've decided to make my rewrite a whole other story -_- sorry for the change of mind.

I will now leave this particular fic alone, so no more updates here. My rewrite is titled _Enter the Angel 2.0_ (because I'm amazing at thinking of new names ;P)


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